Dolores's Downfall
by IfOnlyFredWeasleyHadLived
Summary: When receiving a book in the post one day, Umbridge is keen to share it. What will everyone's reactions be as they delve into the world of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
1. Chapter 1

**So, another story. I hope you like it. The first chapters quite short, but if you like it, I'll upload more chapters. None of the Harry Potter world is mine****, sadly.****  
**

_Great Hall:_

Above the clatter of crockery, the chatter of students and the scratching of quills as last minute homework was hastily completed a cough sounded from the Head Table: "Hem hem." The students' ears were now attuned to this sound, as it often meant trouble was about to occur. Silence fell as the students turned to face the Head Table, breakfast long forgotten. Standing behind the table, in the space that had, so recently, been occupied by Dumbledore, was a short, toad-like woman dressed in a vomit-inducing shade of pink.

Satisfied that she had everyone's attention, however begrudgingly they gave it to her; Umbridge coughed once more for effect and then held up a book. The brown wrapping paper scattered on the table told the more observant students that she had just received it, but the gloating, triumphant expression on her face told everyone that whatever announcement she had, it couldn't be good.

"I have just received a package. In it was a book that will prove, once and for all, that You-Know-Who had not returned and that Harry Potter is a liar. Its title is: _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_. You now are to go back to your common rooms immediately, and in one hour you must meet back here to listen to the book being read. If you fail to do so, the consequences may be … severe." With one last little giggle, she walked down the entire length of the Great Hall and left, with all the students staring after her, and, in the case of the disbanded DA members, glaring after her, quietly seething.

_Gryffindor Common Room:_

Hermione was pacing. Ginny was twisting her fingers through her hair. Harry was tapping his foot. Ron was humming off-key. Fred and George were looking on with an air of bemusement, but they too were worried, something that those who knew them could tell, as Fred was chewing his lip, and George his nails, as if neither of them had eaten in months.

Finally Ron broke the heavy silence. "I don't understand what that book is. It seems almost like it could be a story of Harry's life." This made Harry speed up his tapping, and run his hand through his hair.

"It could be. But what are the Deathly Hallows, and how did Umbridge get hold of it?" Ginny looked at Hermione, seeking answers to her questions, sure that she would find them with the resident Gryffindor bookworm

Hermione shook her head – as much as she hated admitting it, she had no idea. She was sure of one thing though, and told the others: "We need back up. We have no idea what's going to happen in," she checked her watch, "forty-five minutes. We may not be able to deal with it on our own. In any case, even if we can deal with it ourselves, the Order should definitely be told."

_Umbridge's Office:_

"So, where did you get this book, Dolores?" Fudge was standing in her pink office, facing away from the fireplace, his hands clasped behind his back, standing ramrod straight and trying not to make eye contact with any of the kittens.

"It was delivered to me by owl earlier this morning, along with this note." She passed the note over. It read:

Dear Dolores Umbridge,

I have been reading about your struggle to modernize Hogwarts in the _Daily Prophet_, and I support your plight with all my heart. With this letter is a book which will help you in your fight.

Signed,

A supporter and well-wisher

"Have you actually read any of the book Dolores? Do you know for certain that it will forever dispel any rumours of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's return?"

"I haven't actually been able to read it yet. However, I see no reason why it shouldn't prove beneficial to us. Now, will you look at the time! We only have five minutes to get to the Great Hall. Come, Minister, we really should go. All the students should be arriving now."

**Please review. Thank you**


	2. Chapter 2

**So, chapter 2. Again, quite short, but next chapter they start to read the book! Can't wait. Because each chapter of Fanfiction will be one chapter of the book - they'll be really long, so please bear with me if I don't update regularly, I'll be trying. **

**Disclaimer: If only...  
**

Chapter 2:

Throwing the doors of the Great Hall open, Umbridge and Fudge started to stride down to the Head Table, but stopped short at the sight of a large crowd of people gathered there. In the centre were Dumbledore and a big, black dog. Fudge spluttered and looked around, noticing Kingsley Shacklebolt on the outskirts of the crowd, ruffling Ginny's hair as they greeted each other.

"Shacklebolt, arrest Dumbledore, immediately! What is he even doing here?"

"It's quite simple Minister. Professor Umbridge invited you, so I invited my own friends." Harry took a step forward, from where he had been crouched down petting the dog. "If this book is what my friends and I think it is, I would want people I consider my family it hear it."

Hermione went to stand next to him, looking angry at the mere thought of Fudge doing anything to hurt those who were standing behind her, "ProfessorUmbridge didn't say we couldn't invite people to listen to the book being read, Minister." She managed to pack so much contempt into the words Professor and Minister that those who didn't know her, and some who did, where quite shocked and took a careful step back, so as not to be in the firing line. Not everyone had seen her like this before, head high, shoulders back, daring others to challenge her. The majority of them could tell that she shouldn't be crossed. Not Umbridge though, she didn't have enough sense to know that you shouldn't antagonize Hermione Jean Granger and get away with it.

"How dare you speak to the Minister with such disrespect, Miss Granger?! Two weeks' worth of detention should help you understand how to treat your elders and betters, I think." As soon as the threat was uttered, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Fred, George and the black dog formed a protective circle around Hermione, glaring at Umbridge. Their meaning was clear: lay one finger on Hermione, give her one night's worth of detention and we will make you pay.

Trying not to appear intimidated by the hostile looks she was receiving from all the students (except from the Slytherins, who were silently applauding the telling off of the Mudblood), teachers and members of the Order because she dared to threaten Hermione Granger, she raised her voice and addressed the entire hall. "If everyone will take their seats, the reading will commence immediately."

Desperate to hear what was in the mystery book, everyone scrambled to find seats. The majority of the guests squeezed in at Gryffindor table, with everyone who wouldn't fit conjuring up extra chairs for themselves and sitting in between the house tables, apart from Dumbledore, who added an extra chair to the end of the Head Table, and settled himself in it quite comfortably. Harry and his friends were all sitting in the middle of Gryffindor table. Hermione was opposite him, sandwiched between Ron and Fred. On Fred's other side was George, while Mrs Weasley was next to Ron.

On either side of Harry were Ginny and Tonks. Tonks kept shooting looks at Lupin, who was sitting in between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables, chatting to Kinsley and Made-Eye Moody who were sitting next to him while absent-mindedly scratching the top of the dog's head. Ginny was chatting to her father, who still bore some faint scarring from the snake attack. Once everyone had settled down, Umbridge conjured up a chair in front of the Head Table and proceeded to settle herself in it. Looking round she coughed once before opening the book and beginning to read.

**Well, what did you think? Personally, I love the idea of everyone backing Hermione like that. But what did you think? Please review. Positive comments and constructive criticism make me happy - because it tells me that people are reading my story. **


	3. The Dark Lord Ascending

Hey. Finally starting to read the book - loving writing it. Again, please bear with me if it takes a while.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter (the bold bits) does not belong to me, only the non bold bits are mine - the product of my deluded brain.

Just a quick warning, although it won't happen in the first couple of chapters, I will be editing the actual Harry Potter text - removing bits and adding bits. If you don't like it, I'm sorry.

Chapter 3:

"**Chapter 1** –" Umbridge stopped short. It couldn't be. Please let this be a prank. This couldn't be the actual chapter name, could it? However, that note did say that it would prove Voldemort was not back. Maybe there was more to the chapter name than met the eye. Yes, that must be it. Mustering up her determination, she ploughed on. "**Chapter 1 – The Dark Lord Ascending**"

A whisper ran through the Hall at those words, but it soon died down as the students all wanted to hear what was to happen. Harry and those around him shared meaningful looks – was it possible that this book would prove, once and for all, that Voldemort had returned?

"**The two men appeared out of nowhere, a few yards apart in the narrow, moonlit lane. For a second they stood quite still, wands directed at each other's chests; then, recognizing each other, they stowed their wands beneath their cloaks and started walking briskly in the same direction.**

** "News?" asked the taller of the two.**

** "The best," replied Severus Snape."**

Everyone looked at Severus Snape; the teachers, the students and the Order. He studiously avoided all their gazes however, seemingly deeply absorbed in the grain of the wooden table.

"**The lane was bordered on the left by wild, low-growing brambles, on the right by a high, neatly manicured hedge. The men's long cloaks flapped around their ankles as they marched.**

** "Thought I might be late," said Yaxley, his blunt features sliding in and out of sight as the branches of overhanging trees broke the moonlight. "It was a little trickier than I expected. But I hope he will be satisfied. You sound confident that your reception will be good?"**

** Snape nodded, but did not elaborate. They turned right, into a wide driveway that led off the lane. The high hedge curved with them, running off into the distance beyond the pair of impressive wrought-iron gates barring the men's way. Neither of them broke step: In silence both raised their left arms in a kind of salute and passed straight through, as though the dark metal were smoke.**

** The yew hedges muffled the sound of the men's footsteps. There was a rustle somewhere to their right: Yaxley drew his wand again, pointing it over his companion's head, but the source of the noise proved to be nothing more than a pure-white peacock, strutting majestically along the top of the hedge.**

"**He always did himself well, Lucius. **_**Peacocks...**_**" Yaxley thrust his wand back under his cloak with a snort."**

Hermione glanced at Harry. She was already piecing information together. The Malfoys, Yaxley, left arms… She was sure that the book was talking about Death Eaters and Voldemort. With a glance she conveyed her thoughts to Harry, frowning worriedly as he thought it through and nodded his agreement. They'd been able to do this for years. Fred and George could finish each other's sentences, know what the other was thinking and work together in sync. This was what came with being twins like them. Everyone expected it of them, and Fred and George were never ones to disappoint an audience. However, everyone was surprised when Harry and Hermione showed the same abilities, so as a result everyone automatically assumed that they were dating. Hermione just wished people would accept the fact they were like brother and sister, but, since that Rita Skeeter article last year, everyone assumed they were an item.

Ron glanced at the two of them. He wasn't as in tune to the connection, but he could tell when something was up – after all, he'd had years of practice. Hermione quickly whispered her theory to him, and he immediately agreed.

"**A handsome manor house grew out of the darkness at the end of the straight drive, lights glinting in the diamond-paned downstairs windows. Somewhere in the dark garden beyond the hedge a fountain was playing. Gravel crackled beneath their feet as Snape and Yaxley sped toward the front door, which swung inward at their approach, though nobody had visibly opened it.**

** The hallway was large, dimly lit, and sumptuously decorated, with a magnificent carpet covering most of the stone floor. The eyes of the pale-faced portraits on the walls followed Snape and Yaxley as they strode past. The two men halted at a heavy wooden door leading into the next room, hesitated for the space of a heartbeat, then Snape turned the bronze handle."**

"Dun, dun, dun!" George cried out.

"Ooh, be careful! Turning door handles can be dangerous for your health." Fred added.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Boys, it's not the door handle, or even the door, you should be worrying about. It's what's lying behind the door you should be cautious of."

"Oh"

"Yes, Fred. Oh. Now, how about we get on with the chapter?" Hermione turned and faced the front again, a small smile at the twin's antics gracing her lips.

"**The drawing room was full of silent people, sitting at a long and ornate table. The room's usual furniture had been pushed carelessly up against the walls. Illumination came from a roaring fire beneath a handsome marble mantelpiece surmounted by a gilded mirror. Snape and Yaxley lingered for a moment on the threshold. As their eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light, they were drawn upward to the strangest feature of the scene: an apparently unconscious human figure hanging upside down over the table, revolving slowly as if suspended by an invisible rope, and reflected in the mirror and in the bare, polished surface of the table below. None of the people seated underneath this singular sight was looking at it except for a pale young man sitting almost directly below it. He seemed unable to prevent himself from glancing upward every minute or so."**

"Hermione, you don't think that …"

"It's possible. But you don't really think that… I mean he's… Surely…"

"I don't know."

Both Harry and Hermione glanced quickly at the Slytherin table, but, noticing everyone's eyes on them, turned away again just as quickly.

""**Yaxley. Snape." said a high, clear voice from the head of the table. "You are very nearly late."**

**The speaker was seated directly in front of the fireplace, so that it was difficult, at first, for the new arrivals to make out more than his silhouette. As they drew nearer, however, his face shone through the gloom, hairless, snakelike, with slits for nostrils and gleaming red eyes whose pupils were vertical. He was so pale that he seemed to emit a pearly glow."**

"Voldemort." Harry stated. "You see, Minister. He's back."

"Dolores, I insist you stop reading this book right this minute." Fudge was panicking, his eyes moving frantically around the hall, as if Voldemort might suddenly appear. He was shivering slightly, and sweat droplets were gathering just above his top lip.

"You can't order Professor Umbridge to do that Minister." Hermione stood up. "She said that we were going to listen to the book being read – you can't just suddenly change your plans now because it's been proved that Voldemort is back. Anyway," she ploughed on, "surely we should read on, in case we can find out what he's planning." A murmur of approval greeted her words, and Fudge backed down, nodding to Umbridge to continue. Grudgingly, she did so.

""**Severus, here," said Voldemort, indicating the seat on his immediate right. "Yaxley – beside Dolohov.""**

This time it was Luna Lovegood who interrupted. "I always thought that sitting on someone's immediate right was a position of great honour. What did Professor Snape do to earn it?" She seemed quite unaware of the uproar she has caused, but continued to look at the Gryffindor table, waiting for their response. They glanced at each other, all thinking about what Snape could have done – none of the ideas were particularly pleasant. She seemed completely unaware of the odd looks the other Ravenclaws were sending her, but it didn't go unnoticed by the Gryffindors, and many of them sent glares over to the table, Luna was special to almost all the Gryffindors. The Weasleys, Hermione and Harry in particular had special places in their hearts reserved just for her.

"Why don't you come sit with us, Luna?" George smiled, with Fred nodding by his side. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny all agreed as well. Smiling slightly, not really believing that they wanted her to sit with them, Luna stood up and walked over to the Gryffindor table, squeezing in between Ginny and Mr. Weasley, opposite George, who winked at her, causing a delicate blush to light up her cheeks.

"If you've quite finished." Umbridge didn't seem impressed by the disruption and changing seats.

The younger Weasley's and those sitting with them rolled their eyes as Umbridge continued reading.

"**The two men took their allotted places. Most of the eyes around the table followed Snape, and it was to him that Voldemort spoke first.**

"**So?"**

"**My Lord, the Order of the Phoenix intends to move Harry Potter from his current place of safety on Saturday next, at nightfall."**

**The interest around the table sharpened palpably: Some stiffened, others fidgeted, all gazing at Snape and Voldemort.**

"**Saturday...at nightfall," repeated Voldemort. His red eyes fastened upon Snape's black ones with such intensity that some of the watchers looked away, apparently fearful that they themselves would be scorched by the ferocity of the gaze. Snape, however, looked calmly back into Voldemort's face, and, after a moment or two, Voldemort's lipless mouth curved into something like a smile.**

"**Good. Very good. And this information comes –"**

"**-from the source we discussed," said Snape."**

Ginny and Hermione looked at each other. What source? Who was leaking information that directly corresponded with Harry's safety? The two girls made a silent pact to use their worst hexes on whoever it was.

""**My Lord."**

**Yaxley had leaned forward to look down the long table at Voldemort and Snape. All faces turned to him.**

"**My Lord, I have heard differently."**

"**Yaxley waited, but Voldemort did not speak, so he went on, "Dawlish, the Auror, let slip that Potter will not be moved until the thirtieth, the night before the boy turns seventeen."**

**Snape was smiling.**

"**My source told me that there are plans to lay a false trail; this must be it. No doubt a Confundus Charm has been placed upon Dawlish. It would not be the first time; he is known to be susceptible.""**

"May I just congratulate you on that piece of spellwork, again, Dumbledore." said Kingsley in his slow voice. Dumbledore nodded graciously.

"Why thank you. I regret doing it, but it was necessary under the circumstances."

""**I assure you, my Lord, Dawlish seemed quite certain," said Yaxley.**

"**If he has been Confunded, naturally he is certain," said Snape. "I assure **_**you**_**, Yaxley, the Auror Office will play no further part in the protection of Harry Potter. The Order believes that we have infiltrated the Ministry."**

"**The Order's got one thing right, then, eh?" said a squat man sitting a short distance from Yaxley; he gave a wheezy giggle that was echoed here and there along the table."**

Umbridge and Fudge shared shocked looks. The Ministry, infiltrated? It couldn't be possible. Although, Fudge thought, they hadn't thought Voldemort's return was possible either, had they?

"**Voldemort did not laugh. His gaze had wandered upward to the body revolving slowly overhead, and he seemed to be lost in thought."**

"Whose body is that?" burst out Ron. Many others echoed his thoughts.

"We don't know yet, Ron. We'll probably find out soon though. Knowing You-Know-Who, it'll be someone who, in the eyes of most, has done nothing wrong, but they're most likely to be a muggleborn, and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named wants to make an example of them." Hermione's voice grew more scathing as she continued, and finished by shaking her head in despair. She felt sorry for whoever it was, but was selfishly hoping against hope that it was no one she knew and cared about.

""**My Lord," Yaxley went on, "Dawlish believes an entire party of Aurors will be used to transfer the boy –"**

**Voldemort held up a large white hand, and Yaxley subsided at once, watching resentfully as Voldemort turned back to Snape.**

"**Where are they going to hide the boy next?""**

"If you tell, them, Severus, I'm going to make sure you regret the very day you were born. I don't care if you're a spy, don't you dare tell You-Know-Who about anything regarding Harry. Don't you dare!" Remus was on his feet, passionate in his defense of his best friend's son, and the best chance the Wizarding world had of defeating the most evil wizard ever to have lived. The big black dog that was by his side tugged on his robes and he sat down again, fists clenched.

Snape, meanwhile, was still looking at the table. He had a horrible feeling that he was about to tell the Dark Lord about the plans to move Harry Potter to a 'safe' place.

""**At the home of one of the Order," said Snape."**

Remus was on his feet again. "That does it, Snape! How dare you!" Once again the dog tugged on his tatty robes, and, once more, he sat down again, still seething with anger. The dog, however, didn't join him in sitting down, and, instead, walked determinedly up to the Head Table, straight to Severus Snape, and biting down firmly on his left calf. Snape cried out in pain, and tried to kick the dog, but it avoided the blow. With one last vigorous shake of its head, it relinquished its hold on Snape and headed back to Remus, looking for all the world as if it hadn't just attacked one of the professors.

"**The place, according to the source, has been given every protection that the Order and the Ministry together could provide. I think that there is little chance of taking him once he is there, my Lord, unless, of course, the Ministry has fallen before next Saturday which might give us the opportunity to discover and undo enough of the enchantments to break through the rest."**

"**Well, Yaxley?" Voldemort called down the table, the firelight glinting strangely in his red eyes. "**_**Will**_** the Ministry have fallen by next Saturday?""**

"The Ministry will not fall! It will never be infiltrated while I'm in power" Fudge said pompously, sticking his chest out and throwing his head and shoulders back.

"Well, Minister. Evidentially it will fall. And, now we have just discovered that Voldemort is back, you may not be in office any longer." Harry stood up, slamming his fist into the table to make his point about the Ministry falling. Feeling a hand on his back, he glanced at Ginny to see her smiling gently at him, telling him silently to sit down. He did so and Umbridge continued reading, feeling slightly shaken.

""**My Lord, I have good news on that score. I have – with difficulty, and after great effort – succeeded in placing an Imperius Curse upon Pius Thicknesse.""**

"Pius Thicknesse! Impossible…" Fudge trailed off at the sight of Harry glaring fiercely at him, and gestured to Umbridge to continue reading.

"**Many of those sitting around Yaxley looked impressed; his neighbour, Dolohov, a man with a long, twisted face, clapped him on the back.**

"**It is a start," said Voldemort. "But Thicknesse is only one man. Scrimgeour must be surrounded by our people before I act. One failed attempt on the Minister's life will set me back a long way.""**

"And that would be a shame, wouldn't it," Ginny interrupted scathingly. She was sick of living in fear of Voldemort, and was hoping that, with this book; they could find out his plans and put a stop to them before Voldemort even thought of them.

""**Yes – my Lord, that is true – but you know, as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Thicknesse has regular contact not only with the Minister himself, but also with the Heads of all the other Ministry departments. It will, I think, be easy now that we have such a high-ranking official under our control, to subjugate the others, and then they can all work together to bring Scrimgeour down."**

"**As long as our friend Thicknesse is not discovered before he has converted the rest," said Voldemort. "At any rate, it remains unlikely that the Ministry will be mine before next Saturday. If we cannot touch the boy at his destination, then it must be done while he travels.""**

Hermione paled and glanced across at Harry, to see him looking worried at the plans to attempt to kill him. Reaching across the table, she gripped his hand again and didn't let go.

**""We are at an advantage there, my Lord," said Yaxley, who seemed determined to receive some portion of approval."**

"Pathetic," chorused Fred and George in unison, with many nodding their agreement.

""**We now have several people planted within the Department of Magical Transport. If Potter Apparates or uses the Floo Network, we shall know immediately."**

"**He will not do either," said Snape. "The Order is eschewing any form of transport that is controlled or regulated by the Ministry; they mistrust everything to do with the place."**

"**All the better," said Voldemort. "He will have to move in the open. Easier to take, by far.""**

"We'll see about that," Mad-Eye Moody growled, scrunching up his scarred face as he started to think of an escape plan years in advance. "Remember, Potter, during the rescue mission, constant vigilance will be necessary!"

"**Again, Voldemort looked up at the slowly revolving body as he went on, "I shall attend to the boy in person. There have been too many mistakes where Harry Potter is concerned. Some of them have been my own. That Potter lives is due more to my errors than to his triumphs.""**

"Lies!" called out Ron, the sentiment being echoed by many throughout the Great Hall. It seemed that Harry Potter had never been so popular.

"**The company around the table watched Voldemort apprehensively, each of them, by his or her expression, afraid that they might be blamed for Harry Potter's continued existence. Voldemort, however, seemed to be speaking more to himself than to any of them, still addressing the unconscious body above him. **

"**I have been careless, and so have been thwarted by luck and chance, those wreckers of all but the best laid plans. But I know better now. I understand those things that I did not understand before. I must be the one to kill Harry Potter, and I shall be.""**

"Yeah, right!" Neville called out this time. "I'd like to see you try. Dumbledore's Army!"

"Dumbledore's Army!" came the response.

"**At these words, seemingly in response to them, a sudden wail sounded, a terrible, drawn-out cry of misery and pain. Many of those at the table looked downwards, startled, for the sound had seemed to issue from below their feet.**

"**Wormtail,""**

"Bastard!" exclaimed Hermione. "That utter bastard! How dare he… How could he…" she started to trail off, "Bastard!" she repeated fervently.

"You alright, Hermione?" Fred questioned, raising an eyebrow at the angry girl.

"I'm fine Fred, just peachy." She was glaring at the book as if she was trying to set it alight, and Fred decided to drop the subject for now.

"**Said Voldemort, with no change in his quiet, thoughtful tone and without removing his eyes from the revolving body above, "have I not spoken to you about keeping our prisoner quiet?"**

"**Yes, m-my Lord,""**

"How pathetic can you get?" Hermione questioned rhetorically. The black dog barked twice, almost seeming to agree with what Hermione had said.

** "Gasped a small man halfway down the table, who had been sitting so low in his chair that it had appeared, at first glance, to be unoccupied. Now he scrambled from his seat and scurried from the room, leaving nothing behind him but a curious gleam of silver."**

Everyone was silent, some were thinking who the prisoner could be, while some were wondering about Wormtail, and what he had done that could produce such an outburst from the usually polite Hermione Granger.

""**As I was saying," continued Voldemort, looking again at the tense faces of his followers, "I understand better now. I shall need, for instance, to borrow a wand from one of you before I go to kill Potter.""**

"Why does he need to borrow a wand to kill Harry?" questioned George. Harry answered him offhandedly,

"That'll be the twin cores. Voldemort's wand and mine both have a phoenix feather core, and both those feathers can from Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix. It means that neither can fight the other effectively." Silence fell once again as people considered the repercussions of this fact.

"**The faces around him displayed nothing but shock; he might have announced that he wanted to borrow one of their arms.**

"**No volunteers?" said Voldemort. "Let's see ... Lucius, I see no reason for you to have a wand any more.""**

Everyone turned to look at Draco, who seemed to have paled, so that he now could compete with the ghosts if he wanted to. Just one thought was running through his head, 'what had his father done to lose the need of his wand and lose the respect and favour of the Dark Lord into the bargain?

"**Lucius Malfoy looked up. His skin appeared yellowish and waxy in the firelight and his eyes were sunken and shadowed. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse.**

"**My Lord?"**

"**You wand, Lucius. I require your wand."**

"**I..."**

**Malfoy glanced sideways at his wife. She was staring straight ahead, quite as pale as he was, her long blonde hair hanging down her back, but beneath the table her slim fingers closed briefly on his wrist. At her touch, Malfoy put his hand into his robes, withdrew a wand, and passed it along to Voldemort, who held it up in front of his red eyes, examining it closely.**

"**What is it?"**

"**Elm, my Lord," whispered Malfoy.**

"**And the core?"**

"**Dragon – dragon heartstring."**

"**Good," said Voldemort. He drew out his own wand and compared the lengths. Lucius Malfoy made an involuntary movement; for a fraction of a second, it seemed he expected to receive Voldemort's wand in exchange for his own. The gesture was not missed by Voldemort, whose eyes widened maliciously.**

"**Give you my wand, Lucius? **_**My**_** wand?"**

**Some of the throng sniggered.**

"**I have given you your liberty, Lucius, is that not enough for you? But I have noticed that you and your family seem less than happy of late. ... What is it about my presence in your home that displeases you, Lucius?""**

Draco was looking distinctly uncomfortable now. Did he really want a life like the one his father seemed to be living in the book? One full of misery and anxiety, wondering what the Dark Lord would say or do next?

""**Nothing – nothing, my Lord!"**

"**Such **_**lies**_**, Lucius..."**

**The soft voice seemed to his on even after the cruel mouth had stopped moving. One or two of the wizards barely repressed a shudder as the hissing grew louder ; something heavy could be heard sliding across the floor beneath the table.**

**The huge snake emerged to climb slowly up Voldemort's chair. It rose, seemingly endlessly, and came to rest across Voldemort's shoulders: its neck the thickness of a man's thigh, its eyes, with their vertical slits for pupils, unblinking. Voldemort stroked the creature absently with long thin fingers, still looking at Lucius Malfoy.**

"**Why do the Malfoys look so unhappy with their lot? Is my return, my rise to power, not the very thing they professed to desire for so many years?"**

"**Of course, my Lord," said Lucius Malfoy. His hand shook as he wiped sweat from his upper lip. "We did desire it – we do.""**

Everyone was still staring at Draco, and he squirmed uncomfortably in his seat. Pansy Parkinson laid a hand on his arm, no doubt trying to tell him how amazing it was that the Dark Lord had truly returned but Draco shook her off, not interested in what she had to say to him.

"**To Malfoys left, his wife made an odd, stiff nod, her eyes averted from Voldemort and the snake. To his right, his son, Draco, who had been gazing up at the inert body overhead, glanced quickly at Voldemort and way again, terrified to make eye contact."**

Still no one said anything, all just staring at Draco to see his reaction upon hearing what his future seemed to hold.

"**My Lord," said a dark woman halfway down the table, her voice constricted with emotion, "it is an honour to have you here, in our family's house. There can be no higher pleasure.""**

This broke the silence. The dog emitted a low growl, and Draco groaned. Everyone looked at him again, this time with curiousity in their eyes, but he resolutely said nothing.

"**She sat beside her sister, as unlike her in looks, with her dark hair and heavily lidded eyes, as she was in bearing and demeanour; where Narcissa sat rigid and impassive, Bellatrix leaned toward Voldemort, for mere words could not demonstrate her longing for closeness.**

** "No higher pleasure," repeated Voldemort, his head tilted a little to one side as he considered Bellatrix. "That means a great deal, Bellatrix, from you.""**

"Anyone else sensing an awful lot of sexual tension?" George half-heartedly joked. No one paid him any attention. Everyone had heard of Bellatrix LeStrange, one of the most feared Death Eaters, famous for being slightly unstable and the power of her Cruciatus. Most looked afraid, although they knew she had escaped Azkaban, most had not considered what that might mean, that she may go running back to You-Know-Who. Neville, though, had a look of determination and anger on his face that no one had really seen before.

"**Her face flooded with colour; her eyes welled with tears of delight.**

"**My Lord knows I speak nothing but the truth!?**

"**No higher pleasure...even compared with the happy event that, I hear, has taken place in your family this week?"**

**She stated at him, her lips parted, evidently confused.**

"**I don't know what you mean, my Lord."**

"**I'm talking about your niece, Bellatrix. And yours, Lucius and Narcissa. She has just married the werewolf, Remus Lupin. You must be so proud.""**

Tonks beamed with delight at that news, and those sitting round her immediately offered their congratulations for the future. Even Remus allowed himself a ghost of a smile, though he did look worried.

"**There was an eruption of jeering laughter from around the table. Many leaned forward to exchange gleeful looks; a few thumped the table with their fists. The great snake, disliking the disturbance, opened its mouth wide and hissed angrily, but the Death Eaters did not hear it, so jubilant were they at Bellatrix and the Malfoy's humiliation. Bellatrix's face, so recently flushed with happiness, had turned an ugly blotchy red.**

"**She is no niece of ours, my Lord," she cried over the outpouring of mirth. "We – Narcissa and I – have never set eyes on our sister since she married the Mudblood. This brat has nothing to do with either of us, nor any beast she marries.""**

Both Tonks and Remus glared at the book at that, before glancing at each other and sharing a small smile.

""**What do you say, Draco?" asked Voldemort, and though his voice was quiet, it carried clearly through the catcalls and jeers. "Will you babysit the cubs?""**

Everyone turned once again to look at Draco. This time, he did look up, and made eye contact with both Tonks and Remus, who were looking at him with concern in their eyes, for they could tell how hard this must be for him, both now and in the future.

"**The hilarity mounted; Draco Malfoy looked in terror at his father, who was staring down into his own lap, then caught his mother's eye. She shook her head almost imperceptibly, then resumed her own deadpan stare at the opposite wall.**

"**Enough," said Voldemort, stroking the angry snake. "Enough."**

**And the laughter died at once.**

"**Many of our oldest family trees become a little diseased over time," he said as Bellatrix gazed at him, breathless and imploring.**

"**You must prune yours, must you not, to keep it healthy? Cut away those parts that threaten the health of the rest."**

"**Yes, my Lord," whispered Bellatrix, and her eyes swam with tears of gratitude again. "At the first chance!"**

"**You shall have it," said Voldemort. "And in your family, so in the world...we shall cut away the canker that infects us until only those of true blood remain...""**

Draco looked truly disgusted at these words, and got up, out of his seat, once again brushing off Pansy's fingers. Instead he headed over to where Remus Lupin was sitting, and offered him his hand to shake. "Congratulations on your future marriage, Professor. And may I say now," he paused and glanced over to Tonks, "I would be honoured to babysit any children you may have, after all, they are family, and much better family than I have at the moment."

The Slytherin table looked shocked and appalled, but the Gryffindor table were smiling as Draco approached them. "I'm sorry, Potter. Accept my apology?" Harry grinned.

"Of course I do. And, by the way, my name's Harry."

Draco smiled slightly too and sat down in between Ron and Hermione, offering them both his hand to shake as well, and apologizing for his treatment of them as well.

"Right, now I've got the main apologies out of the way, after all, I've treated you three worst out of everyone else, I've got one more thing to do." He stood up on the bench, and called out loudly, "I'm sorry!" With a quick bow and a half smile he sat back down again as everyone burst out laughing and clapping, acknowledging and accepting the Slytherins apology.

"**Voldemort raised Lucius Malfoy's wand, pointed it directly at the slowly revolving figure suspended over the table, and gave it a tiny flick. The figure came to life with a groan and began to struggle against invisible bonds.**

"**Do you recognize our guest, Severus?" asked Voldemort.**

**Snape raised his eyes to the upside-down face. All of the Death Eaters were looking up at the captive now, as though they had been given permission to show curiosity. As she revolved to face the firelight, the woman said in a cracked and terrified voice, "Severus! Help me!"**

"**Ah yes," said Snape as the prisoner turned slowly away again.**

"**And you, Draco?" asked Voldemort, stroking the snake's snout with his wand-free hand. Draco shook his head jerkily. Now that the woman had woken, he seemed unable to look at her anymore.**

"**But you would not have taken her classes," said Voldemort. "For those of you who do now know, we are joined here tonight by Charity Burbage, who, until recently, taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.""**

Charity Burbage, who sat at the Head Table, alongside Snape, let out a little cry, as did all those who took her class.

"**There were noises of comprehension around the table. A broad, hunched woman with pointed teeth cackled.**

"**Yes...Professor Burbage taught the children of witches and wizards all about Muggles...how they are not so different from us..."**

**One of the Death Eaters spat on the floor. Charity Burbage revolved to face Snape again.**

"**Severus...please...please..."**

"**Silence," said Voldemort, with another twitch of Malfoy's wand, and Charity fell silent as if gagged. "Not content with corrupting and polluting the minds of Wizarding children, last week Professor Burbage wrote an impassioned defence of Mudbloods in the **_**Daily Prophet**_**. Wizards, she says, must accept these thieves of their knowledge and magic. The dwindling of the purebloods is, says Professor Burbage, a most desirable circumstance. ... She would have us all mate with Muggles... or, no doubt, werewolves. ..."**

**Nobody laughed this time: There was no mistaking the anger and contempt in Voldemort's voice. For the third time, Charity Burbage revolved to face Snape. Tears were pouring from her eyes into her hair. Snape looked back at her, quite impassive, as she turned slowly away from him again.**

"_**Avada Kedavra**_**.""**

As Umbridge read out the dreaded curse that Voldemort performed on Charity Burbage, Snape turned to her. "Professor Burbage, please, accept my apology. As we have just seen, we can try to change the future, so I promise that I will try to prevent your murder."

She offered him a shaky smile of thanks, and silence once again fell as everyone waited to hear the remainder of the chapter.

"**The flash of green light illuminated every corner of the room. Charity fell, with a resounding crash, onto the table below, which trembled and creaked. Several of the Death Eaters leapt back in their chairs. Draco fell out of his onto the floor."**

Draco shook his head. "I won't fall out of my chair. I won't be there. There's no way I'm becoming a Death Eater after this." Once again, the Gryffindors he was sitting with smiled, maybe there was hope if they could persuade the cold Slytherin Prince that service to Voldemort wasn't as great as he thought it would be.

""**Dinner, Nagini," said Voldemort softly, and the great snake swayed and slithered from his shoulders onto the polished wood."**

The school body shuddered collectively as they heard that last sentence, and Umbridge closed the book, holding her place with her finger.

"Right, that is chapter one over. As the Minister has seen fit to order the book to continue to be read, who volunteers to be next?"

Tonks stood up. "I'll do it." She made her way to the Head Table and, taking the book from Umbridge's stubby fingers, sat down in the chair in front of the table, while Umbridge took her seat behind the table.

So, what do you think? Remember, please review, all comments make me feel appreciated and loved!


	4. In Memoriam

**Hey guys! Next chapter up - I'm really enjoying writing this - I hope you're enjoying reading it! **

**Yet again, although it saddens me, I must include a disclaimer: I do not own the sections in bold or any of the characters.**

"**Chapter 2 – In Memoriam" **

Immediately everyone was reduced to shock silence. Who had died?

"**Harry was bleeding."**

"Poor Harry-kins," started George.

"Bleeding-" continued Fred.

"The horror!" They finished together.

"**Clutching his right hand in his left and swearing under his breath," **

Lee tutted. "Harry, honestly. What type of example are you setting to the first years?"

Harry glared at him. "Shut it Lee. Talk about pot kettle black. How many times do you swear into the microphone during the average Quidditch match?"

"Touché, Harry, touché."

"**There was a crunch of breaking china: he had trodden on a cup of cold tea that had been sitting on the floor outside his bedroom door.**

"**What the -?"**

**He looked around; the landing of number four, Privet Drive, was deserted. Possibly the cup of tea was Dudley's idea of a clever booby trap."**

"Idiot," muttered Harry under his breath.

"**Keeping his bleeding hand elevated, Harry scraped the fragments of the cup together with the other hand and threw them into the already crammed bin just visible inside his bedroom door. Then he trampled across to the bathroom to run his finger under the tap.**

**It was stupid, pointless, irritating beyond belief, that he still had four days left of being unable to perform magic ... but he had to admit to himself that this jagged cut in his finger would have defeated him. He had never learned how to repair wounds and now he came to think of it – particularly in light of his immediate plans – this seemed a serious flaw in his magical education."**

"Poor Harry, does he not know how to heal cuts?" teased Fred.

"Oh Harry, we expected so much more from you," added George.

"Am I the only one who's wondering, what plans?" interrupted Ron.

"I was wondering that as well," agreed Harry

"I suppose. But Harry, healing a cut's quite simple, Harry," Hermione started. "The spell's 'Episkey' and you simply hold your wand about an inch above the cut, and travel along it."

"**Making a mental note to ask Hermione how it was done"**

Hermione blushed.

"**He used a large wad of toilet paper to mop up as much of the tea as he could, before returning to his bedroom and slamming the door behind him. **

**Harry had spent the morning completely emptying his school trunk for the first time since he had packed it six years ago. At the start of the intervening school years, he had merely skimmed off the topmost three quarters of the contents and replaced or updated them, leaving a layer of general debris at the bottom – old quills, desiccated beetle eyes, single socks that no longer fitted."**

"Harry, that's actually kind of disgusting."

"Thanks, Ginny."

"**Minutes previously Harry had plunged his hand into this mulch, experienced a stabbing pain in the fourth finger of his right hand and withdrawn in to see a lot of blood.**

**He now proceeded a little more cautiously. Kneeling down beside the truck again, he groped around in the bottom and, after retrieving an old badge that flickered feebly between **_**Support CEDRIC DIGGORY **_**and **_**POTTER STINKS**_**"**

Cho burst into tears at the reminder of Cedric, as Draco gulped, "Sorry…Harry."

"**A cracked and worn-out Sneakoscope and a gold locket inside which a note signed 'R.A.B.' had been hidden, he finally discovered the sharp edge that had done the damage. He recognised it at once. It was a two-inch-long fragment of the enchanted mirror that his"**

Tonks's voice trembled, but she carried on.

"**Dead godfather, Sirius, had given him."**

"What? No!" Harry shook his head. His godfather couldn't die. He just couldn't. The black dog got up from where he was sitting and headed over to Harry, nuzzling his hand with his nose, and giving Harry's face a long lick, seemingly trying to be comforting.

"**Harry laid it aside and felt cautiously around the trunk for the rest, but nothing more remained of his godfather's last gift except powdered glass, which clung to the deepest layer of debris like glittering grit.**

**Harry sat up and examined the jagged piece on which he had cut himself, seeing nothing but his own bright green eye reflected back at him. Then he placed the fragment on top of that morning's **_**Daily Prophet**_**, which lay unread on the bed, and attempted to stem the sudden upsurge of bitter memories, the stabs of regret and the longing the discovery of the mirror had occasioned, by attacking the rest of the rubbish in the trunk.**

**It took another hour to empty in completely, throw away the useless items and sort the remainder into piles according to whether or not he would need them from now on. His school and Quidditch robes, cauldron, parchment, quills and most of his textbooks were piled in a corner, to be left behind."**

"Harry," started Neville. "Why are you leaving all your school things behind? You'll need them again, you've still got a year to go in Hogwarts."

Harry just shrugged.

"**He wondered what his aunt and uncle might do with them; burn them in the dead of night, probably, as if they were the evidence of some dreadful crime."**

The majority of the students, teachers and guests looked horrified at this sentence, but Hermione and the Weasleys just looked at Harry sympathetically, knowing full well what his aunt and uncle were like, having seen them at Platform 9 and ¾ and having heard Harry talk about them.

"**His Muggle clothing, Invisibility Cloak, potion-making kit, certain books, the photograph album Hagrid had once given him, a stack of letters and his wand had been repacked into an old rucksack. In a front pocket were the Marauder's Map and the locket with the note signed 'R.A.B.' inside it. The locket was accorded this place of honour not because it was valuable – in all usual sense it was worthless – but because of what it had cost to obtain it."**

"You have an invisibility cloak, Potter?" Fudge asked, seeming furious at the idea.

"Yeah."

"And you still get caught?" Fred interrupted.

"Harry, mate, we're going to have to give you lessons on how to avoid trouble." George added, grinning wickedly, as Harry rolled his eyes.

"Fine then, whatever. I just want to know about that locket."

"**This left a sizeable stack of newspapers sitting on his desk beside his snowy owl, Hedwig: one for each of the days Harry had spent at Privet Drive this summer.**

**He got up off the floor, stretched and moved across to his desk. Hedwig made no movement as he began to flick through the newspapers, throwing them onto the rubbish pile one by one; the owl was asleep, or else faking; she was angry with Harry about the limited time she was allowed out of her cage at the moment."**

"And I complain about Pig. You're bird is so temperamental, Harry." Ron grinned.

"You think I don't know that?" Harry was smiling as well.

"**As he neared the bottom of the pile of newspapers, Harry slowed down, searching for one particular edition which he knew had arrived shortly after he had returned to Privet Drive for the summer; he remembered that there had been a small mention on the front about the resignation of Charity Burbage, the Muggle Studies teacher at Hogwarts." **

Professor Burbage choked back a sob, and McGonagall hastened to comfort her.

"**At last he found it. Turning to page ten, he sank into his desk chair and reread the article he had been looking for.**

_**ALBUS DUMBLEDORE REMEMBERED by Elphias Doge"**_

Cries of shock could be heard from every corner of the room. Dumbledore, dead? It was impossible. Many glanced to the Head Table, where Dumbledore sat, looking quite unconcerned.

"Ah, Elphias, I remember him. Always was a good friend. I must write to him, I haven't for a while."

"_**I met Albus Dumbledore at the age of eleven, on our first day at Hogwarts. Our mutual attraction was undoubtedly due to the fact that we both felt ourselves to be outsiders. I had contracted dragon pox shortly before arriving at school, and while I was no longer contagious my pockmarked visage and greenish hue did little to encourage many to approach me. For his part, Albus had arrived at Hogwarts under the burden of unwanted notoriety. Scarcely a year previously, his father, Percival, had been convicted of a savage and well-publicised attack upon three young Muggles."**_

"Professor, is this true?" An unidentified voice called out.

"Yes, it is, I'm afraid." Dumbledore looked remarkably sombre.

"Good for him!" shouted a Slytherin, before quailing under the glare of the other three houses.

"I think it's disgraceful." Zacharias Smith announced, causing members of Dumbledore's Army to roll their eyes in exasperation.

"Well, it was hardly Professor Dumbledore's fault, was it?" Ginny shot at him, causing the Hufflepuff to shut his mouth and stare at the tabletop.

"Thank you, for that defence of me, Miss Weasley. Now, Tonks, shall we get on with the book. I confess being quite gripped."

"_**Albus never attempted to deny that his father (who was to die in Azkaban) had committed this crime; on the contrary, when I plucked courage to ask him, he assured me that he knew his father to be guilty. Beyond that, Dumbledore refused to speak of the sad business, though many attempted to make him do so. Some, indeed, were disposed to praise his father's actions and assumed that Albus, too, was a Muggle-hater. They could not have been more mistaken: as anybody who knew Albus would attest, he never revealed the remotest anti-Muggle tendency. Indeed, his determined support for Muggle rights gained him many enemies on subsequent years.**_

_**In a matter of months, however, Albus's own fame had begun to eclipse that of his father. By the end of his first year, he would never again be known as the son of a Muggle-hater, but as nothing more or less than the most brilliant student ever seen at the school."**_

"Personally, I disagree with that." Dumbledore interrupted. "Anyone would only need to look at Lily Evans, or Hermione Granger, to see that the title Elphias Doge awarded me would be better off with them. Even the Weasley twins," here he paused, eyes twinkling, "have extraordinary intelligence, not seen in most people. They just choose to apply it in a way most others don't."

Fred and George whooped.

"Thanks, Professor!" They chorused, before turning to their mother, with Fred continuing to speak. "See, Mum? We are intelligent, and we," now George joined in, "don't need OWL's or NEWT's!"

Mrs Weasley pursed her lips, but didn't say anything.

"_**Those of us who were privileged to be his friends"**_

"They were not privileged to be my friends, I was privileged to be theirs." murmured Dumbledore quietly.

"_**Benefited from his example, not to mention his help and encouragement, with which he was always generous. He confessed to me in later life that he knew even then that his greatest pleasure lay in teaching.**_

_**He not only won every prize of note that the school offered, he was soon in regular correspondence with the most notable names of the day, including Nicholas Flamel, the celebrated alchemist , Bathilda Bagshot, the noted historian, and Adalbert Waffling, the magical theoretician. Several of his papers found their way into learned publications such as **_**Transfiguration Today**_**, **_**Challenges in Charming**_** and **_**The Practical Potioneer**_**. Dumbledore's future career seemed likely to be meteoric, and the only question that remained was when he would become Minister for Magic. Though it was often predicted in later years that he was on the point of taking the job, however, he never had Ministerial ambitions."**_

"Really?! Well, what's 'Dumbledore's Army' for, if not to try to overthrow me and take control of the Ministry?" Fudge cried out, but no one paid him any attention.

"_**Three years after we had started at Hogwarts Albus's brother, Aberforth, arrived at school."**_

"You have a brother, Professor?" asked a Ravenclaw.

"Yes, I do, and a better brother I could not wish for. However, circumstances…"

"_**Three years after we had started at Hogwarts Albus's brother, Aberforth, arrived at school. They were not alike; Aberforth was never bookish and, unlike Albus, preferred to settle arguments by duelling rather than through reasoned discussion. However, it is quite wrong to suggest, as some have, that the brothers were not friends. They rubbed along as comfortably as two such different boys could do. In fairness to Aberforth, it must be admitted that living in Albus's shadow cannot have been as altogether comfortable experience. Being continually outshone was an occupational hazard of being his friend and cannot have been any more pleasurable as a brother.**_

_**When Albus and I left Hogwarts, we intended to take the then traditional tour of the world together, visiting and observing foreign wizards, before pursuing different careers. However, tragedy intervened. On the very eve of our trip, Albus's mother, Kendra, died, leaving Albus the head and sole breadwinner, of the family."**_

Tonks paused in her reading, and glanced at Dumbledore, her hair a despondent mousy brown, so different from the bright pink it had been when she found out she was to marry Lupin. Dumbledore said nothing, but gestured to her to continue reading.

"_**I postponed my departure long enough to pay my respects at Kendra's funeral, then left for what was now to be a solitary journey. With a younger brother and sister to care for, and little gold left to them, there could no longer be any question of Albus accompanying me.**_

_**That was the period of our lives when we had least contact. I wrote to Albus, describing, perhaps insensitively, the wonders of my journey from narrow escapes from Chimaeras in Greece to the experiments with Egyptian alchemists."**_

"I greatly enjoyed reading of his adventures– it was like I was there with him." Dumbledore admitted.

"_**His letters told me little of his day-to-day life, which I guessed to be frustratingly dull for such a brilliant wizard. Immersed in my own experiences, it was with horror that I heard, towards the end of my year's travels, that yet another tragedy had struck the Dumbledores: the death of his sister Ariana."**_

Yet again Tonks stopped reading, and a hush descended. Just like last time, Dumbledore gestured to Tonks to continue reading, the sparkle missing from his eyes.

"_**Though Ariana had been in poor health for a long time, the blow, coming so soon after the loss of their mother, had a profound effect of both of her brothers. All those closest to Albus – and I count myself one of that lucky number – agree that Ariana's death and Albus's feeling of personal responsibility for it (though, of course, he was guiltless) left their mark upon him forever more.**_

_**I returned home to find a young man who had experienced a much older person's suffering. Albus was more reserved than before, and much less light-hearted. To add to his misery, the loss of Ariana had led, not to a renewed closeness between Albus and Aberforth, but to an estrangement." **_

"One of my greatest regrets, allowing a gap like that to come between us like that." Dumbledore admitted.

"_**(In time this would lift – in later years they re-established, if not a close relationship then certainly a cordial one.) However, he rarely spoke of his parents or of Ariana from then on, and his friends learned not to mention them. Other quills will describe the triumphs of the following years. Dumbledore's innumerable contributions to the store of wizarding knowledge, including his discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood, will benefit generations to come, as well the wisdom he displayed in the many judgements he made while Chief Warlock of the Wizenmagot. They say, still, that no wizarding duel ever matched that between Dumbledore and Grindelwald in 1945. Those who witnessed it have written of the terror and awe they felt as they watched these two extra-ordinary wizards do battle. Dumbledore's triumph, and its consequences for the wizarding world, are considered a turning point in magical history to match the introduction of the international Statute of Secrecy or the downfall of He Who Must Not Be Named.**_

_**Albus Dumbledore was never proud or vain; he could find something to value in anyone, however apparently insignificant or wretched, and I believe that his early losses endowed his with great humanity and sympathy. I shall miss his friendship more than I can say, but my loss is as nothing compared to the wizarding world's. That he was the most inspiring and best loved of all Hogwarts headmasters cannot be in question. He died as he lived: working always for the greater good and, to his last hour, as willing to stretch out a hand to a small boy with dragon pox as he was on the day I met him."**_

A great, profound silence filled the hall as Tonks finished reading the newspaper article. Many sniffs were heard as people were moved to tears thinking of the upcoming death of their beloved Professor. Finally Dumbledore said in a quiet voice that hardly impacted upon the silence, but everyone still managed to hear it, "Please, continue with the chapter, Nymphadora."

"**Harry finished reading but continued to gaze at the picture accompanying the obituary. Dumbledore was wearing his familiar, kindly smile, but as he peered over the top of his half-moon spectacles he gave the impression, even in newsprint, of X-raying Harry, whose sadness mingled with a sense of humiliation. **

**He had thought he knew Dumbledore quite well, but ever since reading this obituary he had been forced to recognise that he had barely known him at all."**

"Don't blame yourself for that, Harry. It is entirely my fault for not confiding in you whenever we talk, despite you confiding in me." Dumbledore comforted him, and Harry shot him a small smile – still struggling to comprehend the knowledge that, not only would Sirius die, but Dumbledore as well.

"**Never once had he imagined Dumbledore's childhood or youth; it as though he had sprung into being as Harry had known him, venerable and silver-haired and old. The idea of a teenage Dumbledore was simply odd, like trying to imagine a stupid Hermione"**

Fred and George burst into laughter as Hermione glared at Harry. "Really, Harry? Really, was that necessary?"

Fred stopped laughing for long enough to say: "Well, to be fair Hermione, future Harry has a point."

Hermione just stuck her tongue out at him.

"**or a friendly Blast-Ended Skrewt."**

"Now future Harry has a point." Hermione said, a smile lighting her lips as she laughed lightly at Hagrid's put out face at the insult to one of his favourite creatures.

"**He had never thought to ask Dumbledore about his past. No doubt it would have felt strange, impertinent even, but after all, it had been common knowledge that Dumbledore had taken part in a legendary duel with Grindelwald, and Harry had not thought to ask Dumbledore what that had been like, nor about any of his other famous achievements. No, they had always discussed Harry, Harry's past, Harry's future, Harry's plans ... and it seemed to Harry now, despite the fact that his future was so dangerous and so uncertain, that he had missed irreplaceable opportunities when he had failed to ask Dumbledore more about himself, even though the only personal question he had ever asked his Headmaster was also the only one he suspected that Dumbledore had not answered honestly.**

"_**What do you see when you look in the Mirror?"**_

"_**I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks."**_**"**

"The Mirror? In first year?" Ron questioned.

"Yeah. That conversation took place during the last time I went to see the Mirror." Harry confirmed.

"The Mirror?" Draco questioned, looking from Harry to Ron.

"The Mirror of Erised. It shows you your deepest desire." Harry expanded.

"And Professor Dumbledore saw himself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks? What did you see?"

"I saw myself surrounded by family. I've never known that, really." Harry admitted, glancing over at Hermione as she, once again, grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Harry James Potter, you do have family. You have me, Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley," she lowered her voice, "Sirius," her voice returned to its normal level, "and countless others. So don't you dare say you have no family. Your blood family may be useless, but you're not without other family."

"I know that now, Hermione. But when I found the Mirror of Erised I was in first year, had only been in school a few months."

Tonks looked affectionately at the two of them, as close as two people could get, so close they were basically siblings, and continued to read.

"**After several minutes thought, Harry tore the obituary out of the **_**Prophet**_**, folded it carefully and tucked it inside the first volume of **_**Practical Defensive Magic and its Use Against the Dark Arts**_**. Then he threw the rest of the newspaper on to the rubbish pile and turned to face the room. It was much tidier. The only things left out of place were today's **_**Daily Prophet**_**, still lying on the bed and, on top of it, the piece of broken mirror.**

**Harry moved across the room, slid the mirror fragment off today's **_**Prophet**_** and unfolded the newspaper. He had merely glanced at the headline when he had taken the rolled-up newspaper from the delivery owl early that morning and thrown it aside, after noting it said nothing about Voldemort. Harry was sure that the Ministry was leaning on the **_**Prophet**_** to suppress news about Voldemort. It was only now, therefore, that he saw what he had missed.**

**Across the bottom half of the front page, a smaller headline was set over a picture of Dumbledore striding along looking harried: **_**DUMBLEDORE – THE TRUTH AT LAST?**_

_**Coming next week, the shocking story of the flawed genius considered by many to be the greatest wizard of his generation. Stripping away the popular image of serene, silver-bearded wisdom, Rita Skeeter reveals the disturbed childhood, the lawless youth, the lifelong feuds and the guilty secrets that Dumbledore carried to his grave."**_

"That utter cow! Hasn't she learned her lesson? How dare she!" Hermione exclaimed, furious at the knowledge that Rita Skeeter would soon be back writing lies about people.

"Hermione?" started Fred

"What do you mean," continued George.

"hasn't learned her lesson?" added Fred.

"What lesson?" they finished together.

Hermione glanced over towards the head table, where Ministry workers were sitting, and lowered her voice to tell them and others around her without officials listening. "She's an unregistered Animagus. That's how she finds stuff out – she turns into a beetle. I caught her at it at the end of fourth year – stuck her in an unbreakable jar."

"Why didn't you tell the Ministry?" asked Ginny.

"I don't know – I just had a feeling I shouldn't. Good job I didn't, as she wrote that article for The Quibbler, remember?"

"Well, why don't you tell them now?" Ginny pressed.

"Do you really think they'd believe me?" Hermione asked, one eyebrow raised.

"They may do – we've been proved right when it comes to You-Know-Who, haven't we. They're in no position to ignore and disparage us."

"OK, I'll them later, but not now, we should continue reading."

They turned back to the front, and nodded to Tonks to continue reading.

"_**WHY was the man tipped to be Minister for Magic content to remain a mere headmaster?" **_

"Because being a headmaster is a much better job than being Minister for Magic." Harry answered scathingly, fists clenching at the thought of Rita Skeeter.

"_**WHAT was the real purpose of the secret organisation known as the Order of the Phoenix?"**_

"To defeat You-Know-Who." said Tonks, horrified at what she was reading.

"_**HOW did Dumbledore really meet his end?"**_

Nobody answered this question.

"_**The answers to these, and many more questions, are explored in the explosive new biography, **_**The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore, **_**by Rita Skeeter, exclusively interviewed by Betty Braithwaite, page 13, inside.**_

**Harry ripped open the paper and found page thirteen. The article was topped with a picture showing another familiar face: a woman wearing jewelled glasses with elaborately curled, blonde hair, her teeth bared in what was clearly supposed to be a winning smile, wiggling her fingers up at him. Doing his best to ignore this nauseating image, Harry read on.**

_**In person, Rita Skeeter is much warmer and softer than her famously ferocious quill-portraits might suggest."**_

Harry coughed at this sentence, Hermione rolled her eyes and Ron let out a snort. None of them held any fondness for Rita Skeeter.

"_**Greeting me in the hallway of her cosy home, she leads me straight to the kitchen for a cup of tea, a slice of pound cake and, it goes without saying, a steaming vat of freshest gossip.**_

"_**Well, of course, Dumbledore is a biographer's dream," says Skeeter. "Such a long, full life. I'm sure my book will be the first of very, very many."**_

_**Skeeter was certainly quick off the mark. Her nine-hundred-page book was completed a mere four weeks after Dumbledore's mysterious death in June. I ask her how she managed the super-fast feat."**_

"Hmm, a Quick-Quotes-Quill that creates lies?" Hermione asked rhetorically.

"What exactly do you have against Skeeter?" asked Draco.

"Are you serious?" Hermione exclaimed. "What don't I have against her? She made Harry into a laughing stock, she implied a whole tonne of stuff about me and Harry, and me and Viktor, none of which was true, she hurt those I cared about, she spied on people without shame, and she made the whole of fourth year absolute hell."

Tonks carried on with reading hurriedly, hardly pausing for breath as she tried to finish the section before there were any more interruptions, and to get it over with as quickly as possible.

""_**Oh, when you've been a journalist as long as I have, working to a deadline is second nature. I knew that the wizarding world was clamouring for the full story and I wanted to be the first to meet that need."**_

_**I mention the recent, widely publicised remarks of Elphias Doge, Special Adviser to the Wizenmagot and long-standing friend of Albus Dumbledore, that 'Skeeter's book contains less fact than a Chocolate Frog Card.'**_

_**Skeeter throws back her head and laughs.**_

"_**Darling Dodgy! I remember interviewing him a few years ago back about merpeople rights, bless him. Completely gaga, seemed to think we were sitting at the bottom of Lake Windermere, kept telling me to watch out for trout."**_

_**And yet Elphias Doge's accusations of inaccuracy have been echoed in many places. Does Skeeter really feel that four short weeks have been enough to gain a full picture of Dumbledore's long and extraordinary life?**_

"_**Oh, my dear." beans Skeeter, rapping me affectionately across the knuckles, "you know as well as I do how much information can be generated by a fat bag of Galleons , a refusal to hear the word 'no' and a nice sharp Quick-Quotes-Quill! People were queuing to dish the dirt on Dumbledore, anyway. Not everyone thought he was so wonderful, you know – he trod on an awful lot of important toes. But old Dodgy Doge can get off his high Hippogriff, because I've had access to a source most journalists would swap their wands for, one who has never spoken in public before and who was close to Dumbledore during the most turbulent and disturbing phase of his youth."**_

_**The advance publicity for Skeeter's biography had certainly suggested that there will be shocks in store for those who believe Dumbledore to have led a blameless life. What were the biggest surprises she uncovered, I ask.**_

"_**Now, come off it, Betty, I'm not giving away all the highlights before anybody's bought the book!" laughs Skeeter. "But I can promise that anybody who still thinks that Dumbledore was white as his beard is in for a rude awakening! Let's just say that anybody hearing his rage against You-Know-Who would have dreamed that he dabbled in the Dark Arts himself in his youth!"**_

Tonks stopped reading suddenly as she digested this information, then with a quick glance up at all the faces staring at her, continued to read again.

"_**And for a wizard who spent his later years pleading for tolerance, he wasn't exactly broad-minded when he was younger! Yes, Albus Dumbledore had an extremely fishy past, not to mention that very fishy family, which he worked so hard to keep hushed up."**_

_**I ask whether Skeeter is referring to Dumbledore's brother, Aberforth, whose conviction by the Wizenmagot for misuse of magic caused a minor scandal fifteen years ago.**_

"_**Oh, Aberforth is just the tip of the dungheap," laughs Skeeter. "No, no, I'm talking about much worse than a brother with a fondness for fiddling about with goats, worse even than the Muggle-maiming father – Dumbledore couldn't keep either of them quiet, anyway, they were both charged by the Wizenmagot. No, it's the mother and sister that intrigued me, and a little digging uncovered a positive nest of nastiness – but, as I say, you'll have to wait for chapters nine to twelve for full details. All I can say now is, it's no wonder Dumbledore never talked about how his nose got broken."**_

_**Family skeletons notwithstanding, does Skeeter deny the brilliance that led to Dumbledore's many magical discoveries?**_

"_**He had brains," she concedes, "although many now question whether he could take full credit for all his supposed achievements. As I reveal in chapter sixteen, Ivor Dillonsby claims he had already discovered eight uses of dragon's blood when Dumbledore 'borrowed' his papers."**_

_**But the importance of some of Dumbledore's achievements, cannot, I venture, be denied. What of his famous defeat of Grindelwald?**_

"_**Oh, now, I'm glad you mentioned Grindelwald," says Skeeter, with a tantalising smile. "I'm afraid those who go dewy-eyed over Dumbledore's spectacular victory must brace themselves for a bombshell – or perhaps a Dungbomb. Very dirty business indeed. All I'll say is that don't be so sure that there really was the spectacular duel of legend. After they've read my book, people may be forced to conclude that Grindelwald simply conjured a white flag from the end of his wand and came quietly."**_

_**Skeeter refuses to give any more away on this intriguing subject, so we turn instead to the relationship that well undoubtedly fascinate her readers more than any other.**_

"_**Oh yes," says Skeeter, nodding briskly, "I devote an entire chapter to the whole Potter-Dumbledore relationship. It's been called unhealthy, even sinister."**_

"How dare she!" exclaimed Hermione.

"I'll give her unhealthy, even sinister!" spat Ginny, earning a glare from Cho, who didn't like how close Harry and Ginny seemed. Ginny paid her no heed though, she was too busy fuming at Rita Skeeter.

"_**Again, your readers will have to by my book for the whole story, but there is no question that Dumbledore took an unnatural interest in Potter from the word go. Whether that was really in the boy's best interests – well, we'll see. It's certainly an open secret that Potter has had a most troubled adolescence.""**_

"Yeah, in part caused by you, you horrid woman," frowned Harry.

"_**I ask whether Skeeter is still in touch with Harry Potter, whom he so famously interviewed last year: a break-through piece in which Potter spoke exclusively of his conviction that You-Know-Who had returned.**_

"_**Oh, yes, we've developed a close bond," says Skeeter. "Poor Potter has few real friends, and we met at one of the most testing moments in his life – the Triwizard Tournament. I am probably one of the only people alive who can say that they know the real Harry Potter.""**_

"I dread to think what the 'real Harry Potter' is like, if I'm not it," said Harry scathingly.

"Few real friends? Ooh, I will make that witch regret the day she picked up a quill!" threatened Hermione, with everyone around her nodding their agreement.

"_**Which leads us very neatly to the many rumours still circulating about Dumbledore's final hours. Does Skeeter believe that Potter was there when Dumbledore died?**_

"_**Well, I don't want to say too much – it's all in the book – but eye witnesses inside Hogwarts Castle saw Potter running away from the scene moments after Dumbledore fell, jumped or was pushed. Potter later gave evidence against Severus Snape, a man against whom he has a notorious grudge."**_

"Is that why Professor Snape sat at You-Know-Who's right hand side? Did he play a part in Professor Dumbledore's death?" asked Luna, who, until this moment, had been sitting quietly. Most people turned to look at Snape, but George looked at Luna, reaching across the table and giving her hand a quick squeeze, smiling at her as her wide-eyed gaze fell upon him.

"You're bloody brilliant, Luna," he whispered. "Never let anyone tell you otherwise."

Luna gave him a brilliant smile. "Thank you George."

" _**Is everything as it seems? That is for the wizarding community to decide – once they've read my book."**_

_**On that intriguing note I take my leave. There can be no doubt that Skeeter has quilled an instant bestseller. Dumbledore's legions of admirers, meanwhile, may well be trembling at what is soon to emerge about their hero.**_

**Harry reached the bottom of the article, but continued to stare blankly at the page. Revulsion and fury rose up in him like vomit; he balled up the newspaper and threw it, with all his force, at the wall, where it joined the rest of the rubbish heaped around his overflowing bin.**

**He began to stride blindly around the room, opening empty drawers and picking up books only to replace them on the same piles, barely conscious of what he was doing, as random phrases from Rita's article echoed in his head: **_**an entire chapter to the whole Potter-Dumbledore relationship ... it's been called unhealthy, even sinister ... he dabbled in the Dark Arts himself in his youth ... I've had access to a source most journalists would swap their wands for...**_

"**Lies!" Harry bellowed, and through the window he saw the next-door neighbour, who had paused to restart his lawnmower, look up nervously."**

"Temper, temper, Potter!" joked Draco, laughing along with the others, hardly believing how happy he felt now he felt truly accepted.

"Shut it, Draco!" replied Harry.

"What's a lawnmower?" asked a curious Hufflepuff Pure-blood.

"It's basically a-" Charity Burbage started, "actually, I think I'll make a list of everything Muggle mentioned, and then tell you all about them at the end."

"**Harry sat down hard on the bed. The broken bit of mirror danced away from him; he picked it up and turned it over in his fingers, thinking of Dumbledore and the lies with which Rita Skeeter was defaming him...**

**A flash of brightest blue. Harry froze, his cut finger slipping on the jagged edge of the mirror again. He had imagined it, he must have done. He glanced over his shoulder, but the wall was a sickly peach colour of Aunt Petunia's choosing: there was nothing blue there for the mirror to reflect. He peered into the mirror fragment again, and say nothing but his own bright green eye looking back at him.**

**He had imagined it, there was no other explanation; imagined it, because he had been thinking of his dead Headmaster. If anything was certain, it was that the bright blue eyes of Albus Dumbledore would never pierce him again."**

Everyone looked at Harry, wide-eyed, as this last sentence was read out. He looked away from them all as Tonks said, "That's the end of the chapter. Next reader?"

She held the book out, and Mr. Weasley stood up. "I'll read next Tonks, if that's OK with everyone?" He glanced around and, seeing no one arguing, headed over to Tonks and took the book off her as she went and sat down in the seat that she had originally been sitting in.

**So, what did you think? I hoped you like it and review , but even if you didn't like it that much, please still review and tell me why so I can improve my writing - that is why I'm writing it!**


	5. The Dursleys Departing

**Hey, I do not own the bits in bold, apart from the authors comments. Just a warning, because of a review - I will be changing the canon - so some of the bits in bold - that come direct from Deathly Hallows - will be edited by me.**

**This whole fic is officially dedicated to Padfoot216 - for being a sweetheart and helping me with this massive challenge,.**

Chapter 5:

Mr Weasley settled himself down in the seat and began to read. **"Chapter 3 – The Dursleys Departing. The sound of the front door slamming echoed up the stairs and a voice yelled, "Oi! You!""**

"If that's your uncle, Harry…" Ginny trailed off, wondering if she could get away with performing her infamous Bat Bogey Hex on the man.

Cho looked across and glared at her, before looking at Harry. "Surely your uncle wouldn't address you like that, Harry."

Harry snorted. "He would, and he does." He turned to Ginny. "And no, Ginny, you can't use the Bat Bogey Hex on him, as much as I appreciate the sentiment."

Ginny blushed furiously. "How did you know…"

"It was fairly obvious, Ginny," chorused Fred and George, winking at their little sister.

"**Sixteen years of being addressed thus left Harry in no doubt whom his uncle was calling; nevertheless, he did not immediately respond. He was still gazing at the mirror fragment in which, for a split second, he had thought Dumbledore's eye. It was not until his uncle bellowed "BOY!""**

"Oh, Harry, how could he address you like that?" asked Cho, desperate for some attention.

"That's the way he's always treated me," Harry stated abruptly, head turned to look directly at her. "And no," he said as she opened her mouth, "I don't want to 'talk about it'." Cho frowned and turned away, clearly put out at this treatment.

"**that Harry got slowly to his feet and headed for the bedroom door, pausing to add the piece of broken mirror to the rucksack filled with things he would be taking with him.**

"**You took your time!" roared Vernon Dursley when Harry appeared at the top of the stairs. "Get down here, I want a word!"**

**Harry strolled downstairs, his hands deep in his jeans pockets. When he reached the living room, he found all three Dursleys. They were dressed for travelling:"**

"I wonder where they're going? I'm clearly not going with them, although it seems I'm planning on going somewhere." Harry pondered.

"Could it be something to do you turning of age, do you think, Harry?" asked Luna in her spacey manner.

"Could be, Luna. Good thought. Yeah, that would make sense, because wouldn't my mother's protection break when I turn of age?" Harry directed this last part to Dumbledore, who nodded at him, while the majority of the school looked nonplussed.

"**Uncle Vernon in a fawn zip-up jacket, Aunt Petunia in a neat, salmon-coloured coat and Dudley, Harry's large, blond, muscular cousin, in his leather jacket.**

"**Sit down!"said Uncle Vernon. Harry raised his eyebrows. "Please!""**

"Wait, what?" asked Harry, sounding incredulous. "He said please? I must be dreaming, but nobody pinch me, not yet anyways."

"**added Uncle Vernon, wincing slightly as though the word was sharp in his throat."**

"Ah, now that makes more sense," sighed Harry. "As if he would ever say please willingly. I bet he's only saying it because he's still scared about what happened this summer, he's still convinced I did something to Dudley," he added to those around him, who all tensed at the reference to that summer, and the trial.

"**Harry sat. He thought he knew what was coming. His uncle began to pace up and down, Aunt Petunia and Dudley following his movements with anxious expressions. Finally, his large, purple face crumpled with concentration, Uncle Vernon stopped in front of Harry and spoke.**

"**I've changed my mind," he said.**

"**What a surprise," said Harry.**

"**Don't you take that tone-" began Aunt Petunia in a shrill voice, but Vernon Dursley waved her down.**

"**It's all a load of claptrap," said Uncle Vernon, glaring at Harry with piggy little eyes. "I've decided I don't believe a word of it. We're staying put, we're not going anywhere."**

**Harry looked up at his uncle and felt a mixture of exasperation and amusement. Vernon Dursley had been changing his mind every twenty-four hours for the past four weeks, packing and unpacking and repacking the car with every change of heart. Harry's favourite moment had been the one when Uncle Vernon, unaware that Dudley had added his dumb-bells to his case since the last time it had been unpacked, had attempted to hoist it back into the boot and collapsed with roars of pain and much swearing."**

"I would tell you that you shouldn't take pleasure from another's pain, Harry," started Hermione, frowning at him before grinning, "but when it comes to your uncle, your allowed to take any pleasure from anything that makes him look like a fool, he's such an arse."

Harry chuckled.

""**According to you," said Vernon Dudley now, resuming his pacing up and down the living room, "we – Petunia, Dudley and I – are in danger. From – from-"**

"**Some of 'my lot', right," said Harry."**

"Some of 'your lot'!" cried out Seamus. "What does he mean?"

Harry sighed. He had a feeling a lot of things were going to come to light that he'd tried hard to keep from his school friends. "He and my aunt and cousin don't like magic – they think it's wrong. In fact, when they took me in, my aunt and uncle swore to stamp it out of me. They looked down on my parents because of what they were, and made up lies, saying my father was useless and unemployed, and they died in a car crash." There was a bitter tone in Harry's voice, and many, having heard this for the first time, were shocked, and shot him sympathetic looks, which he resolutely ignored. They hadn't bothered to sympathise with him or show him any friendship while the Ministry and the _Prophet_ was making up lies, but, now that he had been proved right, they all seemed determined to become his best friend.

""**Well, I don't believe it," repeated Uncle Vernon, coming to a halt in front of Harry again. "I was awake half the night thinking it all over, and I believe it's a plot to get the house.""**

"The house? Privet Drive? He can't really think that, can he?" Harry shook his head in disbelief.

""**The house?" repeated Harry. "What house?"**

"_**This **_**house!" shrieked Uncle Vernon, the vein in his forehead starting to pulse. "Our house! House prices are sky-rocketing round here! You want us out of the way and then you're going to do a bit of hocus-pocus and before we know it the deeds will be in your name and-""**

"He's completely out of his mind!" gasped Ginny.

Harry nodded his agreement. "But, to be fair Ginny, he was completely out of his mind when I received my first Hogwarts letter."

"Really?" asked Ginny, before realising what he'd said. "Wait, your first? How many did you have?"

"Ummm, quite a few."

"**Are you out of your mind?" demanded Harry. "A plot to get this house? Are you actually as stupid as you look?"**

Harry and Ginny both flushed when they realised that they'd said the same thing, albeit a couple of years apart, as Fred and George burst into laughter at their embarrassment.

""**Don't you dare-!" squealed Aunt Petunia, but again, Vernon waved her down: slights on his personal appearance were it seemed, as nothing to the danger he had spotted.**

"**Just in case you've forgotten," said Harry, "I've already got a house, my godfather left me one."**

"You left me the house?" Harry murmured to the dog beside him, so quietly that only those seated next to him could hear the question.

The dog barked once, almost in confirmation and pressed even closer to Harry's leg as Harry buried his hand in its thick fur.

"**So why would I want this one? All the happy memories?"**

**There was silence. Harry thought he had rather impressed his uncle with this argument."**

"Oh, Harry," cried Mrs Weasley. "You shouldn't have had to use that argument at all."

"Don't worry Mrs Weasley, if I would ever want to buy any house, I'd buy The Burrow, for all the happy memories. Not that I ever would buy The Burrow, it's yours."

Mrs Weasley almost burst into tears at this sentiment. "You do know you're always welcome under our roof, Harry, don't you."

"Yes, I do, Mrs Weasley. And thank you so much for everything you've ever done for me."

This caused Mrs Weasley to break out in full blown sobs. "Oh, Harry, dear, it was nothing. You're like a son to me and Arthur." Ron awkwardly put an arm around his mother and held her as she slowly calmed down, and Mr Weasley continued to read.

""**You claim," said Uncle Vernon, starting to pace yet again, "that this Lord Thing-"**

"**Voldemort," said Harry impatiently, "and we've been through this about a hundred times already. This isn't a claim, it's fact, Dumbledore told you last year, and Kingsley and Mr Weasley-"**

**Vernon Dursley hunched his shoulders angrily, and Harry guessed that his uncle was attempting to ward off recollections of the unannounced visit, a few days into Harry's summer holidays, of two fully grown wizards. The arrival on the doorstep of Kingsley Shacklebolt and Arthur Weasley had come as a most unpleasant shock to the Dursleys. Harry had to admit, however, that as Mr Weasley had once demolished half of the living room,"**

As he reached that last sentence, Mr Weasley's voice decreased dramatically in volume, but it was still audible. Mrs Weasley, who had now recovered, started to speak in a measured tone. "You did what, Arthur?"

Mr Weasley visibily gulped. "Um, nothing?" he hazarded tentatively.

"Really? It says you destroyed half the living room!"

"It wasn't his fault, Mrs Weasley," interjected Harry. "It was the summer before last, when he was collecting me by Floo to come to The Burrow. My uncle and aunt don't have a fireplace, and Mr Weasley had to break the wall to get out from behind the wall."

"I did fix it, Molly," assured Mr Weasley, and hastily got on with reading.

"**his reappearance could not have been expected to delight Uncle Vernon.**

"**-Kingsley and Mr Weasley explained it all as well," Harry pressed on remorselessly. "Once I'm seventeen, the protective charm that keeps me safe will break,"**

"What protective charm?" asked Neville, curiously.

"The protective charm my mother gave me," answered Harry. Then, seeing that this wasn't going to be enough, he expanded his answer. "She didn't have to die. Voldemort said that, if she let him kill me, he'd spare her life. But she died anyway, to try and protect me. As a result, Voldemort couldn't kill me."

Silence descended upon the hall, and Harry bent down to pet the dog at his feet, hiding his face from everyone.

"**and that exposes you as well as me. The Order is sure Voldemort will target you, whether to torture you to try and find out where I am, or because he thinks by holding you hostage I'd come and try to rescue you."**

**Uncle Vernon and Harry's eyes met. Harry was sure that in that instant they were both wondering the same thing."**

Harry looked up. "That's actually a difficult question. Would I go and rescue them?"

Those around him laughed despite themselves.

"**Then Uncle Vernon walked on and Harry resumed, "You've got to go into hiding, and the Order wants to help. You're being offered serious protection, the best there is."**

**Uncle Vernon said nothing, but continued to pace up and down. Outside, the sun hung low over the privet hedges. The next-door neighbour's lawnmower stalled again.**

"**I thought there was a Ministry of Magic?" asked Vernon Dursley abruptly.**

"**There is," said Harry, surprised.**

"**Well, then, why can't they protect us? It seems to me that, as innocent victims guilty of nothing more than harbouring a marked man, we ought to qualify for government protection!"**

**Harry laughed; he could not help himself. It was so very typical of his uncle to put his hopes in the establishment, even within this world that he despised and mistrusted."**

"Why does he hate the wizarding world so much?" asked a Ravenclaw.

"Because he doesn't understand it. It's just fear of the unknown – anything he doesn't understand he automatically thinks of as unnatural." Harry explained. "Now, please, no more questions about my family."

""**You heard what Mr Weasley and Kingsley said," Harry replied. "We think the Ministry has been infiltrated."**

**Uncle Vernon strode to the fireplace and back, breathing so heavily that his great, black moustache rippled, his face still purple with concentration.**

"**All right," he said, stopping in front of Harry yet again. "All right, let's say, for the sake of argument, we accept this protection. I still don't see why we can't have that Kinsley bloke.""**

"'That Kingsley bloke'?" laughed Kingsley. "Don't I feel honoured!"

"**Harry managed not to roll his eyes, but with difficulty. This question had also been addressed half a dozen times.**

"**As I've told you," he said, through gritted teeth, "Kingsley is protecting the Mug-I mean, you Prime Minister."**

"**Exactly, he's the best!""**

"Now, that is the highest praise I could ever hope to receive – 'He's the best' from Harry's uncle!" chuckled Kingsley, enjoying this section of the chapter immensely.

"**Uncle Vernon, pointing at the blank television screen."**

"Whats-"

"I've written it down!" interrupted Charity Burbage.

"**The Dursleys had spotted Kingsley on the news, walking along discreetly behind the Muggle Prime Minister as he visited a hospital. This, and the fact that Kingsley had mastered the knack of dressing like a Muggle, not to mention a certain reassuring something in his slow, deep voice, had caused the Dursleys to take to Kingsley in a way that they had certainly not done with any other wizard, although it was true that they had never seen him with his earring in."**

"I'll be sure to wear it when I come to your house to tell them about You-Know-Who, Harry." joked Kingsley, grinning in anticipation.

""**Well, he's taken," said Harry. "But Hestia Jones and Dedalus Diggle are more than up to the job-"**

"**If we'd even seen CVs..." began Uncle Vernon, but Harry lost patience. Getting to his feet, he advanced on his uncle, now pointing at the TV set himself.**

"**These accidents aren't accidents – the crashes and explosions and derailments and whatever else happened since we last watched the news. People are disappearing and dying and he's behind it – Voldemort. I've told you this over and over again, he kills Muggles for fun. Even the fogs – they're caused by Dementors, and if you can't remember what they are, ask your son!"**

**Dudley's hands jerked upwards to cover his mouth. With his parents' and Harry's eyes upon him, he slowly lowered them again and asked, "There are ... more of them?""**

"Does that mean he believes that they were Dementors, instead of accusing me?" Harry asked hopefully.

""**More?" laughed Harry. "More than the two that attacked us, you mean? Of course there are, there are hundreds, maybe thousands by this time, seeing as they feed off dear and despair-"**

"**All right, all right," blustered Vernon Dursley. "You've made your point-"**

"**I hope so, said Harry, "because once I'm seventeen, all of them – Death Eaters, Dementors, maybe even Inferi, which means dead bodies enchanted by a Dark wizard – will be able to find you and will certainly attack you. And if you remember the last time you tried to outrun wizards, I think you'll agree you need help."**

**There was a brief silence in which the distant echo of Hagrid smashing down a wooden front door seemed to reverberate through the intervening years." **

Hagrid and Harry both laughed, as McGonagall looked shocked. "Hagrid – whatever did you do?" she asked.

"Well, Professor Dumbledore did tell me ter deliver ther letter by any means necessary." said Hagrid sheepishly.

"**Aunt Petunia was looking at Uncle Vernon; Dudley was staring at Harry. Finally Uncle Vernon blurted out, "But what about my work? What about Dudley's school? I don't suppose those things matter to a bunch of layabout wizards-"**

"**Don't you understand?" shouted Harry. "**_**They will torture and kill you like they did my parents!**_**"**

"**Dad," said Dudley in a loud voice, "Dad – I'm going with these Order people.""**

"He's actually talking sense, for once in his life," said Harry disbelievingly.

""**Dudley," said Harry, "for the first time in your life, you're talking sense."**

**He knew the battle was won. If Dudley was frightened enough to accept the Order's help, his parents would accompany him: there could be no question of being separated from their Diddykins."**

"Diddykins?" asked Fred and George disbelievingly.

"Oh, if you think that's bad, you should hear the rest." said Harry, offhandedly.

"The rest?" asked Fred, excitedly.

"Tell us, Harry, tell us!" begged George.

"Well, there's Diddy, Popkin, Pumpkin, Ickle Diddykins, Ickle Dudleykins, and, and how could I forget? Dinky Duddydums." Harry listed, before leaning back slightly as Fred and George collapsed with laughter, repeating the names in-between gasps. Slowly they got their laughter back under control, and Fred gestured to his dad to keep reading while they got their breathing back to normal.

"**Harry glanced at the carriage clock on the mantelpiece.**

"**They'll be here in about five minutes," he said, and when none of the Dursleys replied, he left the room. The prospect of parting – probably forever – from his aunt, uncle and cousin was one that he was able to contemplate quite cheerfully, but there was nevertheless a certain awkwardness in the air. What did you say to one another at the end of sixteen years' solid dislike?"**

"Were things really that bad?" asked Draco awkwardly.

"Bad? They were dreadful. They hated me and everything I represented," said Harry, with a trace of bitterness.

"Oh, we always assumed that you were treated you know, better, than you were." Draco admitted.

"Funny how many people think that," sighed Harry. "And then seemed shocked when they realise how much I detest my family. Anyway," he said forcefully, "moving on."

"**Back in his bedroom, Harry fiddled aimlessly with his rucksack, then poked a couple of owl nuts through the bars of Hedwig's cage. They fell with dull thuds to the bottom, where she ignored them.**

"**We're leaving soon, really soon," Harry told her. "And then you'll be able to fly again."**

**The doorbell rang. Harry hesitated, then headed back out of his room and downstairs: it was too much to expect Hestia and Dedalus to cope with the Dursleys on their own.**

"**Harry Potter!" squeaked an excited voice, the moment Harry had opened the door; a small man in a mauve top hat was sweeping his a deep bow. "An honour, as ever!"**

"**Thanks, Dedalus," said Harry, bestowing a small and embarrassed smile upon the dark-haired Hestia. "It's really good of you to do this ... they're through here, my aunt and uncle and cousin..."**

"**Good day to you, Harry Potter's relatives!""**

Ron snorted. "I can't imagine that going down too well!"

"**said Dedalus happily, striding into the living room. The Dursleys did not look at all happy to be addressed thus;"**

"Ooh, I love being right, it happens so rarely when you hang around with Hermione," said Ron gleefully, before Hermione reached round Draco and slapped Ron lightly on the arm.

Mr Weasley rolled his eyes in mock exasperation at his son, and continued to read.

"**Harry half expected another change of mind. Dudley shrank nearer to his mother and the sight of the witch and wizard.**

"**I see you are packed and ready. Excellent! The plan, as Harry has told you, is a simple one," said Dedalus, pulling an immense pocket watch out of his waistcoat and examining it. "We shall be leaving before Harry does. Due to the danger of using magic in your house – Harry still being under-age, it could provide the Ministry with an excuse to arrest him – we shall be driving, say ten miles or so, before Disapparating to the safe location we have picked out for you. You know how to drive , I take it?" he asked Uncle Vernon politely."**

"It won't matter how politely he says it, Uncle Vernon will still hate it, after all, driving a car is something those who are _normal_ do." Harry said, rolling his eyes. "Are you sure we can't skip this chapter?"

"No, Harry." said Hermione. "We need to know what's going to happen in the future, so we can start work on putting it into effect and stopping Voldemort immediately. Even the tiniest clue could be helpful, and we can't afford to skip anything in case we miss something vital."

"OK, I suppose," Harry shrugged resignedly, and accepted the fact that he was, most likely, going to be receiving a lot of pitying looks during this chapter.

"Know how to-? Of course I ruddy well know how to drive!" spluttered Uncle Vernon.

""**Very clever of you, sir, very clever, I personally would be utterly bamboozled by all those buttons and knobs," said Dedalus. He was clearly under the impression that he was flattering Vernon Dursley, who was visibly losing confidence in the plan with every word Dedalus spoke.**

"**Can't even drive," he muttered under his breath, his moustache rippling indignantly, but fortunately neither Dedalus nor Hestia seemed to hear him."**

"That is quite ridiculous," said Hermione. "Getting all worked up over the fact that he can't drive. Some Muggles can't or won't drive either."

""**You, Harry," Dedalus continued, "will wait here for your guard. There has been a little change in the arrangements -"**

**What d'you mean?" said Harry at once. "I thought Mad-Eye was going to come and take me by Side-Long-Apparition?"**

"**Can't do it," said Hestia tersely. "Mad-Eye will explain."**

**The Dursleys, who had been listening to all this with looks of utter incomprehension on their faces, jumped as a loud voice screeched: **_**"Hurry up!"**_** Harry looked all around the room before realising that the voice had issued from Dedalus's pocket watch.**

"**Quite right, we're operating to a very tight schedule," said Dedalus, nodding at his watch and tucking it back into his waistcoat. "We are attempting to time your departure from the house with your family's Disapparition, Harry; thus, the charm breaks at the moment you all head for safety." He turned to the Dursleys. "Well, are we all packed and ready to go?"**

**None of them answered him: Uncle Vernon was still staring, appalled, at the bulge in Dedalus's waistcoat pocket."**

An unidentifiable Slytherin snorted at this last sentence.

""**Perhaps we should wait outside in the hall, Dedalus," murmured Hestia: she clearly felt that it would be tactless for them to remain in the room while Harry and the Dursleys exchanged loving, possibly tearful farewells."**

"Fat chance," said Harry.

""**There's no need," Harry muttered, but Uncle Vernon made any further explanation unnecessary be saying loudly, "Well, this is goodbye, then, boy."**

**He swung his right arm upwards to shake Harry's hand, but at the last moment seemed unable to face it,"**

"He can't even bear to shake your hand?" asked a sixth year Ravenclaw, appalled at the treatment it seemed Harry received.

"**and merely closed his fist and began swinging it backwards and forward like a metronome.**

"**Ready, Diddy?" asked Aunt Petunia, fussily checking the clasp of her handbag so as to avoid looking at Harry altogether."**

"You would never believe that she and Lily were sisters," said Snape, without thinking. "Lily was everything she wasn't: compassionate, clever, good-looking, approachable and genuine."

The majority of the students looked surprised at the fact that Professor Snape seemed to have known Lily Potter, but Harry just looked at his Professor and saw just how much he had cared for Lily. It was there, plain on his face, for the first time – emotion.

Uncomfortable with everyone staring at him, Snape hurriedly gestured to Arthur Weasley to keep reading.

"**Dudley did not answer, but stood there with his mouth slightly ajar, reminding Harry a little of the giant, Grawp."**

"Giant? What giant?" asked Umbridge shrilly, as Hagrid looked at his fingernails with interest, and Harry, Ron and Hermione shared a despairing look. Mr Weasley quickly hurried on with reading to avoid awkward questions.

""**Come along, then," said Uncle Vernon.**

**He had already reached the living-room door when Dudley mumbled, "I don't understand."**

"**What don't you understand, Popkin?""**

"Anything!" mocked Lee Jordan, grinning at Alicia as she frowned at him.

"**asked Aunt Petunia, looking up at her son.**

**Dudley raised a large, ham-like hand to point at Harry.**

"**Why isn't he coming with us?""**

"Wait, what?" asked Harry. "He didn't really just ask about me, as if he cared?"

"Yes, I think he did," said Ginny, wonderingly.

"Wow," said Harry. "No one pinch me, I want to savour this."

"**Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia froze where they stood, staring at Dudley as though he had just expressed a desire to become a ballerina."**

"Now, that would be an entertaining sight," said Fred.

"Yeah, unless he's lost a lot of weight and developed natural grace since we saw him, he's got as much chance of becoming a ballerina as we have of getting all Outstandings in our NEWTs!" finished George with glee.

Hermione tried to bite back her laughter, but failed. The twins shared pleased looks at producing this reaction from her.

" "**What?" said Uncle Vernon loudly.**

"**Why isn't he coming too?" asked Dudley.**

"**Well, he – he doesn't want to," said Uncle Vernon"**

"Nope. Not if you paid me a million Galleons," said Harry, agreeing with his uncle, for once.

"**turning to glare at Harry and adding, "you don't want to, do you?"**

"**Not in the slightest." said Harry."**

"Good to know your opinions don't change in two years mate," joked Ron, grinning at him, silently offering his support.

""**There you are," Uncle Vernon told Dudley. "Now come on, we're off."**

**He marched out of the room: they heard the front door open, but Dudley did not move and after a few faltering steps Aunt Petunia stopped too.**

"**What now?" barked Uncle Vernon, reappearing in the doorway.**

**It seemed that Dudley was struggling with concepts too difficult to put into words. After several moment of apparently painful internal struggle,"**

"That'll be the wrackspurts," commented Luna off-handedly.

"What's a wrackspurt?" asked Harry, used to Luna's creatures, and quite willing to put up with them.

"They float into your head through your ears, and make your brain fuzzy." Luna replied seriously, quite unaware of the odd looks and rolling eyes people where directing her from across the room. The twins, however, were, and George stood up, with Fred just a millisecond behind him.

"If anyone's got anything to say about Luna, they can say it to us," started George

"But be warned, you may not be able to say anything for a quite a while afterwards," finished Fred, standing shoulder to shoulder with his twin.

Everyone was silent, intimidated and surprised by the twin's defence of Luna.

"Thank you, George, Fred," Luna smiled at each twin in turn. "But please, sit down. This isn't you, this is just the Moolacks affecting your temper."

"No Luna, it isn't the Moolacks, I'm just severely irritated by all those who think they're better than you – they're wrong."

"That's very sweet of you, George," Luna smiled at him, before turning to Harry, who had just started to speak to her.

"I'm sorry, Luna. I've been thinking, and it can't possibly be wrackspurts who've affected Dudley. See, he doesn't have a brain that they can make fuzzy," Harry said.

"Oh, well, then…" Luna trailed off. "Normally it's a wrackspurt, but I suppose there must be exceptions."

"**he said, "But where's he going to go?"**

**Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon looked at each other. It was clear that Dudley was frightening them. Hestia Jones broke the silence.**

"**But ... surely you know where your nephew is going?" she asked, looking bewildered.**

"**Certainly we know," said Vernon Dursley. "He's off with some of your lot, isn't he?""**

"If 'Harry Potter's relatives' caused outrage, I can't wait to see what 'your lot' will cause," said Draco, leaning forwards in anticipation.

"**Right, Dudley, let's get in the car, you heard the man, we're in a hurry."**

**Again, Vernon Dursley marched as far as the front door, but Dudley did not follow.**

"**Off with some of **_**our **_**lot?"**

**Hestia looked outraged."**

"And there it is…" said Draco, satisfied.

"**Harry had met this attitude before: witches and wizards seemed stunned that his closest living relatives took so little interest in the famous Harry Potter.**

"**It's fine," Harry assured her. "It doesn't matter, honestly."**

"**Doesn't matter?" repeated Hestia, her voice rising ominously. "Don't these people realise what you've been through? What danger you are in? The unique position you hold in the hearts of the anti-Voldemort movement?""**

"Oh, Harry, how does it feel to know that you are so dearly treasured?" asked Fred.

"Yes, how do you feel, knowing that the whole anti-Voldemort movement is utterly in love with you?" continued George.

"Except for us, of course. I'm mean, no offence, Harry," added Fred,

But we prefer those who are slightly more-" George paused, looking to Fred,

"Feminine!" they finished together.

Harry glared at them. "If you're saying you're just interested in how a girl looks…" he trailed off.

"We're not just interested in looks, Harry. Neither of us are that shallow," Fred told him seriously, in a tone that was the complete opposite of the light, teasing tone he'd just been using.

"Yeah, Harry. Really, we're not just interested in how someone looks, there's so much more to a person than that. Brains, charm, sensitivity, tact, a good sense of humour." George finished, his tone identical to Fred's.

"Oh, right," said Harry, "sorry."

"It's alright," they said together. "Most people just assume stuff about us, we're used to it."

Mr Weasley smiled down at his sons – they'd grown up and matured so much since starting Hogwarts, and he was dreading them leaving the school and joining the Order. He continued reading before he got too wrapped up in his thoughts.

""**Er-no, they don't," said Harry. "They think I'm a waste of space, actually, but I'm used to-"**

"**I don't think you're a waste of space.""**

"Is everyone hearing the same thing I am?" asked Harry, in a slight state of shock.

"Yes, we are, Harry," said Hermione, understanding exactly what he was thinking.

"**If Harry had not seen Dudley's lips move, he might not have believed it. As it was, he stared at Dudley for several seconds before accepting that it must have been his cousin who had spoken; for one thing, Dudley had turned red. Harry was embarrassed and astonished himself.**

"**Well...er...thanks, Dudley."**

**Again, Dudley appeared to grapple with thoughts too unwieldy for expression before mumbling, "You saved my life."**

"**Not really," said Harry. "It was your soul the Dementor would have taken...""**

"Of all the times to turn into Hermione, and become pedantic!" Ginny teased lightly, laughing as Harry glared at her with no real malice in his expression.

"**He looked curiously at his cousin. They had had virtually no contact during his summer or last, as Harry had come back to Privet Drive so briefly and kept to his room so much. It now dawned on Harry, however, that the cup of cold tea on which he had trodden that morning might not have been a booby trap after all."**

"Wow, that would be something. Maybe I should make more of an effort?" mused Harry.

"You should," agreed Hermione. "If you two start treating each other better, maybe your aunt and uncle will treat you better as well. It said just now that they would do anything for their Duddykins."

"**Although rather touched, he was nevertheless quite relieved that Dudley appeared to have exhausted his ability to express his feelings. After opening his mouth once or twice more, Dudley subsided into scarlet-faced silence.**

**Aunt Petunia burst into tears. Hestia Jones gave her an approving look which changed to outrage as Aunt Petunia ran forwards and embraced Dudley rather than Harry."**

"Are you sure you read that correctly, Dad?" asked Fred.

"Yes, I am, George."

Fred raised his eyebrows.

"Sorry, Fred." said Mr Weasley bashfully.

"Ah, Dad, we're used to it by now," said George.

"How can someone treat another person like that?" asked Mrs Weasley, shocked at the behavior of Petunia Dursley.

""**S-so sweet, Dudders..." she sobbed into his massive chest, "s-such a lovely b-boy...s-saying thank you..."**

"**But he hasn't said thank you at all!" said Hestia indignantly. "He only said he didn't think Harry was a waste of space!""**

"Coming from him, that is an 'I love you'," said Harry.

""**Yeah, but coming from Dudley, that's like 'I love you'," said Harry,"**

Everyone around Harry burst into laughter as he grinned bashfully.

"**torn between annoyance and a desire to laugh as Aunt Petunia continued to clutch at Dudley as is he had just saved Harry from a burning building.**

"**Are we going or not?" roared Uncle Vernon, reappearing yet again at the living-room door. "I thought we were on a tight schedule!"**

"**Yes-yes, we are," said Dedalus Diggle, who had been watching these exchanges with an air of bemusement and now seemed to pull himself and now seemed to pull himself together. "We really must be off. Harry-"**

**He tripped forwards and wrung Harry's hand with both of his own.**

"**-good luck. I hope we meet again. The hopes of the wizarding world rest upon your shoulders.""**

"No pressure, then, mate," said Fred.

"Yep, it's fine if you fail, it's not like anyone will really notice anyway." added George.

""**Oh," said Harry, "right. Thanks."**

"**Farewell, Harry," said Hestia, also clasping his hand. "Our thoughts go with you."**

"**I hope everything's OK," said Harry, with a glance towards Aunt Petunia and Dudley.**

"**Oh, I'm sure we shall end up the best of chums,""**

"I'd love to see it," said Harry. "Can any of you guys imagine Dedalus and my uncle sitting in a pub, having a chat over a pint?"

Everyone shook their head, it was a ridiculous image.

said Diggle brightly, waving his hat as he left the room. Hestia followed him

"**Dudley gently released himself from his mother's clutches and walked towards Harry, who had to repress an urge to threaten him with magic."**

"You're really going to have to control yourself, Harry. Learn some tolerance." said Draco.

"That's rich, coming from you, Draco," laughed Harry. "And any way – I did. I didn't hex him, did I?"

"**Then Dudley held out his large, pink hand.**

"**Blimey, Dudley," said Harry, over Aunt Petunia's renewed sobs, "did the Dementors blow a new personality into you?"**

"**Dunno," muttered Dudley. "See you, Harry."**

"**Yeah..." said Harry, taking Dudley's hand and shaking it. "Maybe. Take care, Big D.""**

Fred and George looked enquiringly at Harry.

"Big D – the nickname the guys in his gang gave him," explained Harry.

Dudley nearly smiled, then lumbered from the room. Harry heard his heavy footfalls on the gravelled drive, and then a car door slammed.

"**Aunt Petunia, whose face had been buried in her handkerchief, looked round at the sound. She did not seem to have expected to find herself alone with Harry. Hastily stowing her wet handkerchief into her pocket she said, "Well – goodbye," and marched towards the door without looking at him."**

"Is that it?" asked Mrs Weasley, outraged. "Her nephew, who's lived in her house for over a decade, and that's all she has to say to him when they part?"

""**Goodbye," said Harry.**

**She stopped and looked back. For a moment Harry had the strangest feeling that she wanted to say something to him: she gave him an odd, tremulous look and seemed to teeter on the edge of speech, but then, with a little jerk of her head, she bustled out of the room after her husband and son."**

"How pathetic," Snape sneered. "She never did have any of the courage Lily had. If Lily had wanted to say something, she would have said it."

Everyone stared at him again, and Mr Weasley coughed to interrupt the awkward silence that had descended.

"That's the end of the chapter. Would anyone else like to read?"

Mad-Eye-Moody got to his feet. "I think the next chapter is the escape plan, so I'll read it, if you don't mind, Arthur."

"Of course, Alistair." Mr Weasley handed the book over and returned to his seat, next to his daughter.

**Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys. I don't own the bits in bold (apart from this note)**

**Warning: I said this last time, but I don't know if everyone noticed it. I will be CHANGING the canon. There will be bits in bold that aren't in the books. Those bits are mine.**

**Thank you, and enjoy the chapter**

"Before, you start reading, Mad-Eye," Harry said, "could I just say something?"

"Of course, Potter," Moody said in his gruff voice. "Just as long as you get on with it."

Harry raised his voice and addressed the hall. "Right. So my uncle, aunt and cousin treated me badly and don't like magic. You all know that now, so please, _don't go on about it_." He slouched in his seat, glancing around as everyone muttered under their breath.

Hermione reached across the table and grabbed his hand, forcing him to look her in the eyes. "Harry, whatever we find out may happen in the future, please, just remember you're a brother to me, and I would do anything for you."

"Thanks Hermione," Harry smiled. "And the same goes the other way. I would die for all of you," he said, looking at those sitting around him, grinning as they all returned the sentiment.

"We're all part of the Order, Harry. The Order or Dumbledore's Army. We'd all die for each other," said George.

"Yeah, that's what we have that…" Fred hesitated. "…Voldemort hasn't. People who care about us."

Everyone stared at Fred in shock and admiration.

"You…you said his name…" murmured Ron.

"Of course I did, Ron. We all really need to get past this fear of his name. How are we supposed to defeat him if we're so scared? Anyway, I was put in Gryffindor for a reason. We all were," he gestured round the group. "With the exception of Luna, of course," he nodded to the blonde. "But really, she's just as brave as the rest of us. She just happens to have brains as well."

"Thank you, Fred. It means a lot to be included…" Luna trailed off, staring at the table.

"We understand Luna," Harry said, smiling gently at her. "For whatever reasons, whether because we face people judging us and assuming things about us, or because we witness it happening to those we care about, we understand."

Mad-Eye raised his voice. "Right, while that was all very pleasant, we have a book to read. So please, have this heart to heart later." Saying this he started to read.

"**Chapter 4 – The Seven Potters Harry ran back upstairs to his bedroom, arriving at the window just in time to see the Dursleys' car swinging out of the drive and off up the road. Dedalus's top hat was visible between Aunt Petunia and Dudley in the back seat. The car turned right at the end of Privet Drive, its windows burned scarlet for a moment in the now setting sun, and then it was gone.**

**Harry picked up Hedwig's cage, his Firebolt and his rucksack, gave his unnaturally tidy bedroom one last sweeping look and then made his ungainly way back downstairs to the hall, where he deposited cage, broomstick and bag near the foot of the stairs. The light was fading rapidly now, the hall full of shadows in the evening light. It felt almost strange to stand here in the silence and know that he was about to leave the house for the last time. Long ago, when he had been left alone while the Dursleys went out to enjoy themselves,"**

"Oh, Harry…" Cho said.

"No, Cho, I said I didn't want anyone to fuss." Harry said, frowning at the girl.

"I suppose you've talked about it with your precious Hermione, though. You seem to tell her everything," Cho pouted.

"No, I haven't talked to Hermione about it. Not really anyway. She knows aspects, but there are some things I wouldn't tell her, or anyone, because it's my old life, and I don't want it interfering with my life at Hogwarts. And stop making such a massive fuss about me talking to Hermione, she's just a friend. She's like a sister to me, has been since first year." Harry was furious as he said his piece.

"**the hours of solitude had been a rare treat: pausing only to sneak something tasty out of the fridge he had rushed upstairs to play on Dudley's computer, or put on the television and flicked through the channels to his heart's content. It gave him an odd, empty feeling to remember those times; it was like remembering a younger brother whom he had lost."**

Harry shot a 'thank you,' smile at Ginny as she squeezed his arm gently, not needing to say anything to convey her sympathy and offer of support.

""**Don't you want to take a last look at the place?" he asked Hedwig, who was still sulking with her head under her wing. "We'll never be here again. Don't you want to remember all the good times? I mean, look at this doormat. What memories...Dudley puked on it after I saved him from the Dementors...Turns out he was grateful after all, can you believe it?...And last summer, Dumbledore walked through that front door...""**

Harry turned his gaze to the front. "Why did you visit me at home, Professor?"

Dumbledore looked remarkably serious as he answered the question. "I have my suspicions, Harry, but I won't tell you them yet, as I have every confidence that they will come out in time as we carry on reading the book."

"**Harry lost the thread of his thoughts for a moment and Hedwig did nothing to help him retrieve it, but continued to sit with her head under her wing. Harry turned his back on the front door.**

"**And under here, Hedwig-" Harry pulled open a door under the stairs"**

Harry looked up, horrified. "Please, just skip this bit. Even if we don't skip anything else, just please, can we skip to the bit where the others arrive?"

"No, Potter, we can't. And what's so bad that I'm about to read?"

Moody glanced back down at the book, and his scowl of confusion changed to anger as he read the next sentence.

""**-is where I used to sleep!" **

"What!? Harry, are you serious?" cried Hermione.

"Yeah, Hermione, I slept in the cupboard under the stairs," muttered Harry.

"But why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't want to talk about it! It was part of my life that I didn't want to interfere with Hogwarts. Anyway, by the time I met you, I'd been moved into the second spare room."

"You mean that there were two spare rooms, yet you still had to sleep in the cupboard?" Hermione's voice was quivering with anger.

"Yes, Hermione, that is what I mean. But please, I don't like to dwell on it for longer than is necessary, so please, let's move on."

"Move on?" Hermione's tone was loaded with indignation, but Harry did not deign to respond.

Silently, Fred passed her a piece of parchment headed _Ways To Punish The Dursleys, _and winked at her when she stared at him, round-eyed. "Go on then, I know you're itching to put down a whole load of ideas."

"But the trouble we could get into…"

"Oh, come on Hermione, they deserve it. Anyway, George and I are masters at avoiding trouble – you can take lessons from us, if you like." Fred offered, throwing her another wink, and a cheeky grin.

Hermione laughed. "I don't think so, Fred." But she proceeded to find a quill and scribble down a couple of ideas onto the parchment as Moody continued to read.

"**You never knew me then-blimey it's small, I'd forgotten..."**

**Harry looked around at the stacked shoes and umbrellas, remembering how he used to wake every morning looking up at the underside of the staircase, which was more often than not adorned with a spider or two."**

Ron visibly shuddered at the mention of spiders, drawing a chuckle out of Harry, who grinned at one of his best mates.

" **Those had been the days before he had known anything about his true identity; before he had found out how his parents had died or why such strange things often happened around him. But Harry could still remember the dreams that had dogged him, even in those days: confused dreams involving flashes of green light and, once – Uncle Vernon had nearly crashed the car when Harry had recounted it – a flying motorbike..."**

The black dog gave a single, short, sharp bark, causing Hermione, Harry and the Weasleys to laugh, and others to look on in confusion. Malfoy just frowned, thinking. Harry nodded at him, confirming his thoughts.

"**There was a sudden, deafening roar from somewhere nearby. Harry straightened up with a jerk and smacked the top of his head on the low door frame. Pausing only to employ a few of Uncle Vernon's choicest swear words, he staggered back into the kitchen, clutching his head and staring out the window into the back garden.**

**The darkness seemed to be rippling, the air itself quivering. Then, one by one, figures began to pop into sight as their Disillusionment Charms lifted. Dominating the scene was Hagrid, wearing a helmet and goggles and sitting aside an enormous motorbike with a black sidecar attached. All around him other people were dismounting from brooms and, in two cases, skeletal, black winged horses.**

**Wrenching open the back door, Harry hurtled into their midst. There was a general cry of greeting as Hermione flung her arms around him,"**

"It's good to know that Hermione's greetings don't get any less enthusiastic as time passes!" quipped Harry, moving his legs quickly as Hermione aimed a kick at him.

"**Ron clapped him on the back and Hagrid said, "All righ', Harry? Ready fer the off?"**

"**Definitely," said Harry, beaming around at them all. "But I wasn't expecting this many of you!"**

"**Change of plan," growled Mad-Eye, who was holding two enormous, bulging sacks and whose magical eye was spinning from darkening sky to house to garden with dizzying rapidity. "Let's get undercover before we talk to you about it."**

**Harry led them all back into the kitchen where, laughing and chattering, they settled on chairs, sat themselves upon Aunt Petunia's gleaming work-surfaces or leaned up against her spotless appliances: Ron, long and lanky; Hermione, her bushy hair tied back in a long plait; Fred and George, grinning identically; Bill, badly scarred"**

Mrs Weasley cried out, "My boy! Oh, Bill, what happened?"

"I don't know yet, Mum, but it hasn't happened yet, and I'm sure we'll find out eventually." Bill sighed, moving from where he was sitting just behind his parents at the Gryffindor table to embrace Mrs Weasley comfortingly.

"**and long-haired; Mr Weasley, kind-faced, balding, his spectacles a little awry; Mad-Eye, battle worn, one-legged, his bright blue magical eye whizzing in its socket; Tonks, whose short hair was her favourite shade of bright pink; Lupin, greyer, more lined; Fleur,"**

"Why's Fleur there?" asked Neville. "I mean, we are talking about Fleur Delacour, right? Not some other Fleur?"

"Oh, it'll be because of Bill," answered George offhandedly.

"Yes, they're in lurve, aren't you, Bill? Bill?" Fred asked, teasingly. When he got no response from his eldest brother, who was staring at the doors of the Great Hall, he followed his gaze. Standing there was a slender woman, her hair flowing down her back. She was walking elegantly towards them, turning heads with every step.

"Fleur," said Bill cordially, a small smile gracing his face, "you got my message then?"

"Of courze, Bill, I came here az quickly az I could," she replied, kissing him on the cheek, brushing the corners of their lips together slightly. She then turned to look at the table.

" Arry, eet eez so good to see you," she smiled, pecking him on both cheeks. "'Ow are you? Gabrielle eez always talking about you," she smiled at them all once again before conjouring a chair and placing it next to Bill, starting to talk to him in a hushed tone, with him replying similarly.

"If there are no further interruptions…" growled Moody, before continuing to read. **"slender and beautiful, with her long, silvery blonde hair; Kingsley, bald, black, broad-shouldered; Hagrid, with his wild hair and beard, standing hunchbacked to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling, and Mundungus Fletcher, small, dirty and hangdog, with his droopy, basset hound's eyes and matted hair. Harry's heart seemed to expand and glow at the sight: he felt incredibly fond of all of them, even Mundungus, whom he had tried to strangle the last time they had met."**

"Why would I want to strangle Mundungus? I mean, I'm sure there are any number of reasons, but which one is it?" Harry mock-mused.

"'Ere, who says I've done anythin' wrong?" complained Mundungus.

"Shut it, you," growled Moody, before returning to the book. **""Kingsley, I thought you were looking after the Muggle Prime Minister?" he called across the room.**

"**He can get along without me for one night," said Kingsley, "You're more important.""**

"More important than the Muggle Prime Minister? Wow!" Harry said.

"Well, you're definitely more popular!" Hermione joked, rolling her eyes at the current Muggle Prime Minister's actions, many of which ended up in public outcry and u-turns.

""**Harry, guess what?" said Tonks from her perch on top of the washing machine, and she wriggled her left hand at him; a ring glittered there."**

Tonks grinned enthusiastically, her hair the brightest pink anyone had ever seen.

"**You got married?" Harry yelped, looking from her to Lupin.**

"**I'm sorry you couldn't be there, Harry, it was very quiet."**

"**That's brilliant, congrat-"**

"**All right, all right, we'll have time for a cosy catch-up later!" roared Moody over the hubbub, and silence fell in the kitchen. Moody dropped the sacks at his feet and turned to Harry. "As Dedalus probably told you, we had to abandon Plan A. Pius Thicknesse has gone over, which gives us a big problem. He's made it an imprisonable offence to connect this house to the Floo Network, place a Portkey here or Apparate in or out. All done in the name of your protection, to prevent You-Know-Who getting in at you. Absolutely pointless, seeing as your mother's charm does that already."**

"How does your mother's charm do that, Harry?" asked Draco.

Harry said nothing, just shrugged and looked at the table. Instead, Dumbledore spoke. "Harry's mother didn't have to die – she sacrificed herself to save Harry's life. As a result, when Voldemort tried to kill Harry, he couldn't. Her love saved him. As long as he is living with someone who shares his mother's blood, in this case, Harry's aunt, Voldemort cannot get near him."

Draco looked at Harry, wide eyed. "So you have no choice but to live with these people?"

"Yeah, but it's fine – I don't want pity, I just want to carry on reading the book."

Moody nodded approvingly, and resumed reading.** ""What he's really done is to stop you getting out of here safely.**

"**Second problem: you're under-age, which means you've still got the Trace on you."**

"**I don't-""**

"Do you not know what the Trace is, Harry?" interrupted Hermione.

"No, I don't. What is it?"

"It's a charm that is on all under-seventeen year-old witches and wizards. It's what allows the Ministry to detect under-age magic." Hermione explained quickly. "But it isn't foolproof, as you know from second year, Harry."

"So, if someone else does magic around someone who's under-age, the Trace will register it as the person who is under-age?" Harry asked.

"Sort of," Fred interrupted. "If it worked exactly like that, then Ginny and Ron would be in trouble constantly at home. The Ministry knows where witches and wizards live, and if there is, like you and Hermione, one witch or wizard in an area of Muggles, then the Trace works, because they assume you're the only being capable of magic, so it must be you. However, if there's a large family, then the Ministry rely on those who are of-age to ensure no under-age person uses magic, because otherwise no one would be able to use magic."

"Oh, right, I get it," said Harry. "Thanks, you two." And he turned to face the front again, but not before shooting an odd look at Fred, who simply raised an eyebrow in response.

""**The Trace, the Trace!" said Mad-Eye impatiently. "The charm that detects magical ability around under-seventeens, the way the Ministry finds out about under-age magic! If you, or anyone around you, casts a spell to get you out of here, Thicknesse is going to know about it, and so will the Death Eaters.**

"**We can't wait for the Trace to break, because the moment you turn seventeen you'll lose all the protection your mother gave you. In short: Pius Thicknesse thinks he's got you cornered good and proper."**

**Harry could not help but agree with the unknown Thicknesse."**

"Don't be so negative, Harry!" exclaimed Ginny.

"I'm sorry, but I think for pessimism is warranted. How am I supposed to get out of the house?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "You can manage it, it's doable."

"How?"

"You forget, I've got Fred and George as brothers. And, if you hang around with them long enough, you start to think anything's possible!"

Harry laughed as Fred and George grinned at their sister and chorused; "Thanks, Gin!"

Luna laughed airily, causing several people to stare at her.

"Sorry, but it is such a perfect summary of Fred and George," she explained.

"Thanks, Luna," they chorused again, their faces splitting into even wider grins, their eyes sparkling with mirth.

Luna stopped laughing and sat up straight, stared at the twins for a second, especially George, then dug in her bag for a piece of parchment and a quill.

"What are you doing, Luna?" George asked.

"Drawing you," Luna said. "I want to do a complete collection of all my friends, and I thought I'd start with you, looking like you did just now. That is," she added, "if you don't mind?"

"Mind? Luna, I'm honoured. Of course, just draw me twice, I make a much better model than Fred!" George joked striking a pose.

A frown marred Luna's face for an instant. "No, I want you natural. It makes pictures so much more real, compared to when people are posing. Just continue to listen to the book, and ignore me."

"Ignore you, Luna?" said George. "Impossible." He winked at her, and she quickly bent her head over her parchment.

""**So, what are we going to do?"**

"**We're going to use the only means of transport left to us, the only ones the Trace can't detect, because we don't need to cast spells to use them: brooms, Thestrals, and Hagrid's motorbike."**

**Harry could see the flaws in this plan; however, he held his tongue to give Mad-Eye the chance to address them."**

"Ah, so you have learnt the art of patience, then, Potter, I mean, Harry," corrected Draco.

"Evidently," joked Harry. "But I'm sure that I will lose the skill again."

"Without a doubt," Draco returned quickly.

""**Now, your mother's charm will only break under two conditions: when you come of age, or-" Moody gestured around the pristine kitchen"**

Fred and George shuddered. "Unnatural!"

""**-you no longer call this place home. You and your aunt and uncle are going your separate ways tonight, in the full understanding that you're never going to live together again, correct?""**

"I'm looking forward to that," cheered Harry, already relishing the thought of saying goodbye to his aunt, uncle and cousin.

"**Harry nodded.**

"**So this time, when you leave, there'll be no going back, and the charm will break the moment you get outside its range. We're choosing to break it early, because the alternative is waiting for You-Know-Who to come and seize you the moment you turn seventeen.**

"**The only thing we've got on our side is that You-Know-Who doesn't know we're moving you tonight. We've leaked a fake trail to the Ministry: they think you're not leaving until the thirtieth."**

Snape winced as several people turned to glare at him, knowing that he had told Voldemort all about the real date of the rescue. He swore to himself that he was going to try to change his future, just as Draco had done when he befriended the Gryffindors.

Irritating as he found them, he had to secretly admire them for always sticking by what was right, and being loyal to each other to a fault. This current group of Gryffindors were certainly a curious group, but when you mixed half of the Weasley children with the brightest witch of her generation, a Longbottom with who was thought of by many as an idiot, and, of course, the Boy Who Lived, what did you expect?

Shaking his head to try to banish these thoughts, he focused back in on what was being read: if he was to change his future he needed to know what to change, and what effects it would have.

""**However, this is You-Know-Who we're dealing with, so we can't just rely on him getting the date wrong; he's bound to have a couple of Death-Eaters patrolling the skies in this general area, just in case. So, we've given a dozen different houses every protection we can throw at them. They all look like they could be the place we're going to hide you, they've all got some connection with the Order: my house, Kingsley's place, Molly's Auntie Muriel's – you get the idea."**

"**Yeah," said Harry, not entirely truthfully, because he could still spot a gaping hole in the plan."**

"What were we just talking about, Harry?" asked Draco.

""**You'll be going to Tonks's parents'. Once you're within the boundaries of the protective enchantments we've put on their house, you'll be able to use a Portkey to The Burrow. Any questions?"**

"**Er-yes," said Harry. "Maybe they won't know which of the twelve secure houses I'm heading for at first, but won't it be sort of obvious once-" he performed a quick headcount "-fourteen of us fly off towards Tonks's parents'?"**

** "Ah," said Moody, "I forgot to mention the key point. Fourteen of us won't be flying to Tonks's parents'. There will be seven Harry Potters moving through the skies tonight, each of them with a companion, each pair heading for a different safe house.""**

"That's actually quite a good plan. But seven Harry Potters… won't that mean six of you will be pretending to be me? Putting your lives in danger?"

"Evidently, Harry," said George.

"But we want to," continued Fred.

"We need to get you out of there Harry," added Hermione.

"And if the only way to do that is to pretend to be you, well..." Ron shrugged.

"We are all willing to do eet, 'Arry," inserted Fleur.

"But you're risking your lives…" argued Harry.

"And?" demanded Hermione. "We're fighting Voldemort, it's not going to be like going for a walk in the park, is it? Of course there are going to be dangers! But we all accept that, and will do whatever it takes to bring him down!"

"Hermione's got a point, Harry," said Fred.

"She has," George backed him up. "And you have absolutely no choice when it comes to this plan, unless you want to be killed by Voldemort…" he trailed off.

"OK, you've made your point," Harry conceded. "But," he continued, looking at all of them, "it doesn't mean I'm happy about it."

"No one expects you to be," said Ginny. "They're your friends, of course you're worried about them, but they will all be of-age when this happens, they're all old enough to make their own decisions. I just wish I could be part of the mission. It's so irritating being under-age."

"No, Ginny!" Harry exclaimed. "There's no way you're going to risk your life like that. For one thing, you'll still be under-age, two…just no."

"Why not? I'm not a baby! I can defend myself."

"But you'll be under-age, Ginny."

"And? Ron and Hermione will only just be of-age."

"No, I won't Ginny. By this point, I'll have been of-age almost a year," argued Hermione. "Now, can we get on with reading? I have this strange feeling that we're about to go through most of this argument again, in the book."

"Thank you, Miss Granger. At least someone's talking sense," Moody grumbled, returning to the book.

"**From inside his cloak Moody now withdrew a flask of what looked like mud. There was no need for him to say another word; Harry understood the rest of the plan immediately.**

"**No!" he said loudly, his voice ringing through the kitchen. "No way!"**

"**I told them you'd take it like this," said Hermione, with a hint of complacency."**

Hermione ducked her head and blushed profusely.

""**If you think I'm going to let six people risk their lives-!"**

"**-because it's the first time for all of us," said Ron.**

"**This is different, pretending to be me-"**

"**Well, none of us really fancy it, Harry," said Fred earnestly. "Imagine if something went wrong and we were stuck as specky, scrawny gits forever.""**

Hermione raised her head and let out a small chuckle, receiving a quick grin from Fred and she shook her head despairingly at him.

"**Harry did not smile.**

"**You can't do it if I don't cooperate, you need me to give you some hair."**

"**Well, that's that plan scuppered," said George. "Obviously there's no chance of us all getting a bit of your hair unless you cooperate."**

"**Yeah, thirteen of us against one bloke who's not allowed to use magic; we've got no chance," said Fred.**

"**Funny," said Harry. "Really amusing."**

"**If it has to come to force, then it will," growled Moody, his magical eye now quivering a little in its socket as he glared at Harry. "Everyone here's over-age, Potter, and they're all prepared to take the risk.""**

"What did we tell you?" chorused Fred, George, Hermione and Ron.

"**Mundungus shrugged and grimaced; the magical eye swerved sideways to glare at him out of the side of Moody's head.**

"**Let's have no more arguments. Time's wearing on. I want a few of your hairs boy, now."**

"**But this is mad, there's no need-"**

"**No need!" snarled Moody. "With You-Know-Who out there and half the Ministry on his side? Potter, if we're lucky, he'll have swallowed the fake bait and he'll be planning to ambush you on the thirtieth, but he'd be mad not to have a Death Eater or two keeping an eye out, it's what I'd do. They might not be able to get at you or this house while your mother's charm holds, but it's about to break and they know the rough position of the place. Our only chance is to use decoys. Even You-Know-Who can't split himself into seven."**

**Harry caught Hermione's eye and looked away at once."**

Everyone looked at Harry and Hermione, who both looked nonplussed.

Dumbledore pursed his lips, so his suspicions were correct.

""**So, Potter-some of your hair, if you please."**

**Harry glanced at Ron, who grimaced at him in a just-do-it sort of way."**

"A lot of help you are," groaned Harry.

"Sorry, mate, but it's necessary if we're to get you out of there, it seems." Ron apologised.

""**Now!" barked Moody.**

**With all of their eyes upon him, Harry reached up to the top of his head, grabbed a hank of hair and pulled.**

"**Good," said Moody, limping forwards as he pulled the stopper out of the flask of Potion. "Straight in here, if you please."**

**Harry dropped the hair into the mud-like liquid. The moment it made contact with its surface the Potion began to froth and smoke then, all at once, it turned a clear, bright gold."**

Hermione, Ron and Harry grinned at that, remembering the first, and currently last, time they had used Polyjuice Potion.

"Ooh, Harry, wow, a bright gold," simpered Cho.

"What does that mean?" he asked. "I know a bit about Polyjuice Potion, but I don't know what the colour symbolizes."

Cho quickly started to explain before Hermione could. "The clearer and brighter someone's Polyjuice Potion is, the better, purer soul they have."

"Oh, right, that explains a lot!" Harry joked, causing Hermione and Ron to laugh, and everyone else to look bewildered.

""**Ooh, you look much tastier than Crabbe and Goyle, Harry," said Hermione,"**

"What?!" Draco spluttered, as Crabbe and Goyle look rather confused.

"Oh, right, confession time." Harry winced as he thought about the confession the three of them were now having to make.

"Well," he started. "You know in second year, when everyone was wondering about who the Heir of Slytherin was?"

Ginny paled at the reminder, Harry saw and grabbed her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

Cho noticed this and pouted, determined to have serious words with both Harry, how dare he behave like that? and with Ginevra Weasley, didn't she realise that Harry was already dating her?

"Yeah…" Draco said slowly, not sure where this was going.

"Well, over Christmas, Ron and I Polyjuiced into Crabbe and Goyle," Harry admitted in a rush.

"Wait, what? Why?" Draco asked thoroughly confused.

"We thought you were the Heir of Slytherin," confessed Hermione, looking at Draco.

"Really? Me, the Heir of Slytherin?" he asked, bemused.

"Yeah, so we brewed Polyjuice Potion in Myrtle's bathroom, and then, when it was ready, drugged Crabbe and Goyle so they were knocked unconscious in order allow us to impersonate them, and asked you about the Heir of Slytherin." Ron admitted.

"Who's idea was it?" asked Draco, curious.

"Mine…"said Hermione. "We had to come up with some way to do get close to you to try and find out whether you were the Heir of Slytherin, and I'd read about the Potion, so I thought it was the best way to successfully get the information we needed."

Crabbe and Goyle stood up threateningly at this news, brandishing their wands. Goyle pointed his wand at the Gryffindor table, and said loudly and clearly, "_Crucio,". _The red light shot out of his wand and headed straight for the group of people.

Fred moved so quickly that no one had time to react: he shoved Hermione down onto the bench, lying on top of her as the spell headed straight for them, hitting him in his side.

He immediately cried out in intense pain as the spell worked its effects. George paled at the sight of his twin in pain, but immediately got to his feet and faced Goyle.

"_Expelliarmus_!" he shouted out, causing Goyle's wand to fly from his hand. The second the wand left Goyle's grasp, the curse which held Fred in its grasp ended, and he slowly, carefully, sat up, moving his weight off Hermione, wincing and shaking, and breathing heavily.

Even as George prepared to cast another spell at his twin's attacker, Tonks disarmed him, and Kingsley and Moody both advanced on Goyle, tying him up and silencing him.

"I'll take him to the Ministry holding cells," offered Kingsley. "Dumbledore, may I have access to the head's office to use the Floo?"

"Shouldn't you be asking me?" asked Umbridge petulantly.

Kingsley just looked at her scathingly before turning back to Dumbledore.

"Yes, of course. The password is _Acid Pops_."

Kingsley nodded and left the hall, levitating Goyle before him.

While this had been going on, those around the Gryffindor table were fussing over Fred, who was still shaking slightly.

"I'm fine, guys, honestly," Fred reassured them, but none looked convinced.

"Fred, why?" Hermione murmured.

"Because otherwise the curse would have hit you," he explained, looking at her.

"But…"

"Hermione, if I hadn't got in the way of that curse, it would have hit you, and hurt you. If I hadn't been sitting here, someone else would have been, and they would have done exactly the same thing." Fred looked deadly serious, and Hermione just looked back at him.

"We would have, Hermione," interrupted Harry, but Hermione paid him no heed.

"But it hurt you, Fred."

He shrugged. "It wasn't that bad, and it was over quite quickly. Rather me than you, at any rate."

"I saw you, Fred. You were lying on top of me, remember. You were in pain. Promise me you'll never do anything like that again."

"I'll do my best," he assured her.

"Thank you, Fred. For promising that, and for taking that curse for me."

"Well, we're friends, aren't we?"

She pulled him into a tight embrace, which he gladly returned. When the hug was broken, Fred turned to George and pulled him into a hug as well.

"Thanks for disarming him, mate."

"That's fine," George said, still pale from watching his twin be put through that pain. "But, please, keep that promise to Hermione, and never do anything like that again. My heart wouldn't be able to cope."

Fred nodded. He glanced over at his parents, who both were as white as sheets.

"Mum, Dad, honestly, I'm fine. It was only a couple of seconds, and it's over now." He reached over and grabbed Mrs Weasley's hand.

"Gregory Goyle will be doubtless be sent to Azkaban," Moody reassured Molly, and then picked up the book, which he had hastily discarded when the Cruciatus Curse had first hit Fred.

"**before catching sight of Ron's raised eyebrows, blushing slightly and saying, "oh, you know what I mean – Goyle's Potion looked like bogies.""**

Fred let out an unsteady laugh at this sentence, and wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders, giving her a quick squeeze.

""**Right then, fake Potters line up over here, please," said Moody.**

**Ron, Hermione, Fred, George and Fleur lined up in front of Aunt Petunia's gleaming sink.**

"**We're one short," said Lupin.**

"**Here," said Hagrid gruffly, and he lifted Mundungus by the scruff of his neck and dropped him down beside Fleur, who wrinkled her nose pointedly and moved along to stand between Fred and George instead."**

Fleur wrinkled her nose, seemingly even now disgusted at the idea of having to stand next to Mundungus.

""**I toldjer, I'd sooner be a protector," said Mundungus.**

"**Shut it," growled Moody. "As I've already told you, you spineless worm, any Death Eaters we run into will be aiming to capture Potter, not kill him. Dumbledore always said You-Know-Who would want to finish Potter in person. It'll be the protectors who have got the most to worry about, the Death Eaters'll want to kill them."**

**Mundungus did not look particularly reassured, but Moody was already pulling half a dozen egg-cup-sized glasses from inside his cloak, which he handed out, before pouring a little Polyjuice Potion into each one.**

"**Altogether, then..."**

**Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Fleur and Mundungus drank. All of them gasped and grimaced as the Potion hit their throats: at once their features began to bubble and distort like hot wax. Hermione and Mundungus were shooting upwards; Ron, Fred and George were shrinking; their hair was darkening, Hermione's and Fleur's appearing to shoot backwards into their skulls.**

**Moody, quite unconcerned, was now loosening the ties of the large sacks he had brought with him: when he straightened up again, there were six Harry Potters gasping and panting in front of him.**

**Fred and George turned to each other and said together, "Wow-we're identical!"**

"**I dunno, though, I reckon I'm still better-looking," said Fred, examining his reflection in the kettle."**

"Of course you are, Fred," teased Hermione, glancing at the eighteen year-old next to her.

"Finished!" Luna said, pushing a piece of paper towards the middle of the table. It was a detailed pen drawing of George. Even on paper there was a mischievous glint in his eyes, and a cheeky grin gracing his lips.

George looked at it, then glanced up and grinned at Luna. "It's brilliant, Luna. Absolutely brilliant."

"Thanks, George. I'm probably going to do Fred next. I liked his expression when he was looking at Hermione, so I'm going to draw him like that."

Fred and Hermione glanced at each other, then both shrugged as Moody continued reading.

""**Bah," said Fleur, checking herself in the microwave door, "Bill, don't look at me, I'm 'ideous.""**

"Never," Bill said, kissing Fleur on the nose.

"When I am looking like 'Arry, no offense, 'Arry, I do," Fleur protested.

"None taken," said Harry.

""**Those whose clothes are a bit roomy, I've got smaller here," said Moody, indicating the first sack, "and vice versa. Don't forget the glasses, there's six pairs in the side pocket. And when you're dressed, there's luggage in the other sack."**

**The real Harry thought that this might just be the most bizarre thing he had ever seen, and he had seen some extremely odd things. He watched as his six doppelgangers rummaged in the sacks, pulling out sets of clothes, putting on glasses, stuffing their own things away. He felt like asking them to show a little more respect for his privacy as they all began stripping off with impunity, clearly much more at ease with displaying his body than they would have been with their own."**

"Ah, Harry, are you shy?" teased Lee.

"I just don't want my body on display to thirteen people, none of whom I'd show my body to." Harry rolled his eyes.

"Who would you show your body to, then?" Lee picked up on Harry's phrasing.

"None of your business, Lee. It's not you, that's all you need to know," Harry retorted.

""**I knew Ginny was lying about that tattoo," said Ron, looking down at his bare chest."**

"And how do you know anything about Harry's chest?" Ron asked, looking at his sister.

Ginny shrugged, but she couldn't stop a small smile flitting across her face one that Harry saw and emulated, grabbing her hand underneath the table. Ever since the book started being read, he had become aware of Ginny as more than the younger sister of one of his best friends. He couldn't help but wonder if these feelings had been there a lot longer, but he didn't notice them because he was infatuated with Cho.

"Harry, you can't date her, you're dating me!" Cho pouted.

"Cho, our relationship never worked, and we're over, all you want to do is talk about Cedric. And Ginny and I aren't dating."

Cho burst into tears, but Harry paid her no attention.

Michael Corner looked put out at the suggestion that his girlfriend could be dating someone else, but before he could voice his thoughts, Ginny said; "Harry and I aren't dating, Michael, for goodness sake."

""**Harry, your eyesight really is awful," said Hermione, as she put on glasses."**

"Thanks, Hermione," Harry rolled his eyes at his best friend, who grinned cheekily back.

"**Once dressed, the fake Harrys took rucksacks and owl cages, each containing a stuffed snowy owl, from the second sack.**

"**Good," said Moody, as at last seven dressed, bespectacled and luggage-laden Harrys faced him. "The pairs will be as follows: Mundungus will be travelling with me, by broom-"**

"**Why'm I with you?" grunted the Harry nearest the back door.**

"**Because you're the one that needs watching," growled Moody, and sure enough, his magical eye did not waver from Mundungus as he continued, "Arthur and Fred-"**

"**I'm George," said the twin at whom Moody was pointing. "Can't you even tell us apart when we're Harry?""**

"Fred, given your previous track record, that's you, isn't it?" Hermione asked, looking at him and raising an eyebrow.

"Could be, but not sure, it could be George pretending to be me pretending to be him." retorted Fred.

""**Sorry, George-"**

"**I'm only yanking your wand, I'm Fred really-""**

"You're nothing if not predictable, are you, Fred?" Ginny mocked gently, her eyes shining with exasperated love for her brothers.

""**Enough messing around!" snarled Moody. "The other one - George or Fred or whoever you are - you're with Remus. Miss Delacour-"**

"**I'm taking Fleur on a Thestral," said Bill. "She's not that fond of brooms."**

**Fleur walked over to stand beside him, giving his a soppy, slavish look that Harry hoped with all his heart would never appear on his face again."**

Fleur pouted, but Bill just chuckled and kissed it away, causing Mrs Weasley to frown and smile, a confusing combination. Ginny whispered in Harry's ear. "She wants grandkids, but she's not to keen on Fleur."

"Oh,"

""**Miss Granger with Kingsley, again by Thestral-"**

**Hermione looked reassured as she answered Kingsley's smile; Harry knew that Hermione, too, lacked confidence on a broomstick.**

"**Which leaves you and me, Ron!" said Tonks brightly, knocking over a mug-tree as she waved at him.**

**Ron did not look quite as pleased as Hermione."**

"Is there something wrong with me, Ron?" asked Tonks, straight-faced.

"Um, well, no," he stuttered, not sure how to answer.

Tonks burst into laughter at the sight of his expression. "It's quite alright, I know I'm clumsy enough to make anyone worry."

"But by God is she a good Auror," added Moody. "One of the best I've ever trained."

At this compliment Tonks's cheeks turned red and her hair turned a deep purple.

""**An' you're with me, Harry. That all righ'?" said Hagrid, looking a little anxious. "We'll be on the bike, brooms and Thestrals can't take me weight, see. 'Not a lot o' room on the seat with me on it, though, so you'll be in the sidecar."**

"**That's great," said Harry, not altogether truthfully."**

"Umm…" said Harry, glancing guiltily at Hagrid's confused and hurt expression.

""**We think the Death Eaters will expect you to be on a broom," said Moody, who seemed to guess how Harry was feeling. "Snape's had plenty of time to tell them everything about you he's never mentioned before, so if we do run into any Death Eaters, we're betting they'll choose one of the Potters who look at home on a broomstick." **read Moody quickly, explaining the situation to everyone and seemingly putting Hagrid's mind at rest.

""**All right then," he went on, trying up the sack with the fake Potters' clothes in it and leading the way back to the door, "I make it three minutes until we're supposed to leave. No point locking the back door, it won't keep the Death Eaters out when they come looking...Come on..."**

**Harry hurried into the hall to fetch his rucksack, Firebolt and Hedwig's cage, passing two of the Harrys holding a whispered conversation, heads bent together."**

"Who's that?" asked Neville.

"It could be any of us," Hermione said. "It could be me and Ron, although I don't know why we'd be talking without Harry; it could be Fred and George plotting something-"

"Oi!" interrupted George. "Fred and I do not _plot_. We just plan in secret just in case someone wants to try to stop us."

"That's plotting, George," sighed Hermione. "Anyway, it could be any of us."

"**When they caught sight of Harry looking at them, they moved away from each other, and hurried out of the back door, just ahead of Harry."**

"Surely that changes things?" asked Draco. "Whoever's talking, they don't want Harry to realise, so it they must have something to hide."

"It could still be Fred and George _plotting_ something," countered Hermione.

"As if we'd plot something when we were on a dangerous mission," protested Fred. "We'd take it much more seriously than that."

Hermione conceded. "I suppose. Sorry, I know you two don't only care about your next prank, I know you are secretly mature and sensible."

"Hermione, you spilled our secret!" joked George. "But seriously," he added, his tone changed. "Thanks for realising that."

"**On every side broomsticks were leaping into hands; Hermione was just being helped up on to a great, black Thestral by Kingsley; Fleur on to the other by Bill. Hagrid was standing ready beside the motorbike, goggles on.**

"**Is this it? Is this Sirius's bike?"**

"**The very same," said Hagrid, beaming down at Harry. "An' the last time you was on it, Harry, I could fit yeh in one hand!""**

Hermione and Ginny "aahed" at this, causing Harry to flush bright red.

"**Harry could not help but feel a little humiliated as he got into the sidecar. It placed him several feet below everybody else: Ron smirked at the sight of him sitting there like a child in a bumper car." **

"What's a-" a pupil started to ask, but everyone hushed them as they waited to hear what would happen next.

"**Harry stuffed his rucksack and broomstick down by his feet and rammed Hedwig's cage between his knees. It was extremely uncomfortable.**

"**Arthur's done a bit o' tinkerin'.""**

"Oh, Arthur, trust you," sighed Mrs Weasley, shaking her head at her husband.

"Sorry, Molly, but I'm sure my 'tinkering' will be beneficial."

"**said Hagrid, quite oblivious to Harry's discomfort. He settled himself astride the motorcycle, which creaked slightly and sank inches into the ground. "It's got a few tricks up its handlebars now. Tha' one was my idea."**

**He pointed a thick finger at a purple button near the speedometer.**

"**Please be careful, Hagrid," said Mr Weasley, who was standing beside them, holding his broomstick. "I'm still not sure that was advisable and it's certainly only to be used in emergencies.""**

"Or not," he added.

""**All right them," said Moody. "Everyone ready, please; I want us all to leave at exactly the same time or the whole point of the diversion's lost."**

**Everybody mounted their brooms.**

"**Hold tight, now, Ron," said Tonks, and Harry saw Ron throw a furtive, guilty look at Lupin before placing his hands on either side of her waist."**

"Ron, I'm not going to attack you for ensuring you don't fall off mid-flight," assured Lupin.

"**Hagrid kicked the motorbike into life: it roared like a dragon and the sidecar began to vibrate.**

"**Good luck, everyone," shouted Moody. "See you all in about an hour at The Burrow. On the count of three. One...two...THREE."**

**There was a great roar from the motorbike and Harry felt the sidecar give a nasty lurch: he was rising through the air fast, his eyes watering slightly, hair whipped back off his face. Around him brooms were soaring upwards too: the long back tail of a Thestral flicked past. His legs, jammed into the sidecar by Hedwig's cage and his rucksack, were already sore and starting to go numb. So great was his discomfort that he almost forgot to take a last glimpse of number four, Privet Drive; by the time he looked over the edge of the sidecar, he could no longer tell which one it was. Higher and higher they climbed into the sky-**

**And then, out of nowhere, out of nothing, they were surrounded."**

"Oh, no," murmured Hermione, a sentiment evidently echoed by all those around her, going by the anxiety now written all over their faces, there for anyone to read.

"**At least thirty hooded figures, suspended in mid-air, formed a vast circle in the midst of which the Order members had risen, oblivious-**

**Screams, a blaze of green light on every side:"**

"Please, please, please, don't let anyone die," Ginny muttered, terrified for her family and friends. Without speaking, Harry grabbed her hand, this time on top of the table, and reached across to grab Ron's hand. Ginny joined hands with Luna who had stopped drawing, and who reached across to clutch onto George's hand. Fred and he immediately grabbed hands as well, Fred offering his spare hand to Hermione, which she grasped gratefully. Draco hesitated for a second, then took Hermione's proffered hand, and Ron completed the circle of friends, all hoping and praying that all would come out of this alive and unharmed.

"**Hagrid gave a yell and the motorbike rolled over. Harry lost any sense of where they were: street lights above him, yells around him, he was clinging to the sidecar for dear life. Hedwig's cage, the Firebolt and his rucksack slipped from beneath his knees-**

"**No-HEDWIG!"**

**The broomstick spun to earth, but he just managed to sieve the strap of his rucksack and the top of the cage as the motorbike swung the right way up again. A second's relief, and then another burst of green light. The owl screeched and fell to the floor of the cage."**

"Hedwig…" Harry breathed. His owl meant so much to him, his way of remembering that magic existed while all his possessions were locked away during the holidays. She had been a present from Hagrid, his first ever proper present.

""**No –NO!"**

**The motorbike zoomed forwards; Harry glimpsed hooded Death Eaters scattering as Hagrid blasted through their circle.**

"**Hedwig-**_**Hedwig-**_**"**

**But the owl lay motionless and pathetic as a toy on the floor of her cage. He could not take it in, and his terror for the others was paramount. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a mass of people moving, flares of green light, two pairs of people on brooms soaring off into the distance, but he could not tell who they were-**

"**Hagrid, we've got to go back, we're got to go back!" he yelled over the thunderous roar of the engine, pulling out his wand, ramming Hedwig's cage on to the floor, refusing to believe that she was dead. "Hagrid, TURN AROUND!""**

"Harry, no, don't…" Hermione whispered quietly. She raised her voice to address Mad-Eye. "Professor Moody, can we please read this bit as quickly as possible. I don't think any of us could bear it if…" she trailed off, unable and unwilling to put her thoughts into words.

He nodded, understanding how she and the others were feeling.

""**My job's ter get you there safe, Harry!" bellowed Hagrid, and he opened the throttle."**

Hermione and Ginny let out a sigh of relief, but quickly held their breath again in horror as Moody continued to read.

""**Stop - STOP!" Harry shouted. But as he looked back again two jets of green lights flew past his left ear: four Death Eaters had broken away from the circle and were pursuing them, aiming for Hagrid's broad back. Hagrid swerved, but the Death Eaters were keeping up with the bike; more curses shot after them, and Harry had to sink low into the sidecar to avoid them. Wriggling round, he cried "**_**Stupefy**_**!" and a red bolt of light shot from his own wand, cleaving a gap between the four pursuing Death Eaters as they scattered to avoid it.**

"**Hold on, Harry, this'll do for 'em!" roared Hagrid, and Harry looked up just in time to see Hagrid slamming a thick finger into a green button near the fuel gauge.**

**A wall, a solid brick wall, erupted out of the exhaust pipe. Craning his neck, Harry saw it expand into being in mid-air. Three of the Death Eaters swerved and avoided it, but the fourth was not so lucky: he vanished from view and then dropped like a boulder from behind it, his broomstick broken into pieces. One of his fellows slowed up to save him, but they and the airborne wall were swallowed by darkness as Hagrid leaned low over the handlebars and sped up.**

**More Killing Curses flew past Harry's head from the two remaining Death Eaters' wands; they were aiming for Hagrid. Harry responded with further Stunning spells: red and green collided in mid-air in a shower of multi-coloured sparks and Harry thought wildly of fireworks, and the Muggles below who would have no idea what was happening-**

"**Here we go again, Harry, hold on!" yelled Hagrid, and he jabbed at a second button. This time a great net burst from the bike's exhaust, but the Death Eaters were ready for it. Not only did they swerve to avoid it, but the companion who had slowed to save their unconscious friend had caught up: he bloomed suddenly pout of the darkness and now three of them were pursuing the motorbike, all shooting curses after it.**

"**This'll do it, Harry, hold on tight!" yelled Hagrid, and Harry saw him slam his whole hand on to the purple button beside the speedometer."**

Everyone drew in a breath at this, worried as to what Mr Weasley's 'tinkering' had done.

"**With an unmistakeable bellowing roar, dragon fire burst from the exhaust, white-hot and blue, and the motorbike shot forwards like a bullet with a sound of wrenching metal."**

"Wow…" Fred and George whispered together.

"Do you think…"

"We could…We'd have to tone it down a bit though…"

"Obviously…"

"**Harry saw the Death Eaters swerve out of sight to avoid the deadly trail of flame, and at the same time felt the sidecar sway ominously: it metal connections to the bike had splintered with the force of acceleration.**

"**It's all righ', Harry!" bellowed Hagrid, now thrown flat on to his back by the surge of speed; nobody was steering now, and sidecar was starting to twist violently in the bike's slipstream.**

"**In on it, Harry, don' worry!" Hagrid yelled, and from inside his jacket pocket he pulled his flowery pink umbrella."**

"Oh, no," Harry groaned, anticipating something awful.

""**Hagrid! No! Let me!"**

"**REPARO!"**

**There was a deafening bang and the sidecar broke away from the bike completely:"**

Hermione let out a small cry at this, looking petrified for Harry's safety.

"**Harry sped forwards , propelled by the impetus of the bike's flight, then the sidecar began to lose height – **

**In desperation Harry pointed his wand at the sidecar and shouted, "**_**Wingardium Leviosa**_**!"**

**The sidecar rose like a cork, unsteerable but at least still airborne:"**

Hermione relaxed slightly, but was still tense. Fred squeezed her hand gently, compelling her to look at him.

"This is Harry, Hermione. I'm sure he'll be OK."

"**he had but a split second's relief, however, as more curses streaked past him: the three Death Eaters were closing in.**

"**I'm comin', Harry!" Hagrid yelled from out of the darkness, but Harry could feel the sidecar beginning to sink again: crouching as low as he could, he pointed at the middle of the oncoming figures and yelled "**_**Impedimenta**_**!"**

**The jinx hit the middle Death Eater in the chest: for a moment the man was absurdly spread-eagled in mid-air as though he had hit an invisible barrier: one of his fellows almost collided with him-**

**Then the sidecar began to fall in earnest, and the remaining Death Eater shot a curse so close to Harry that he had to duck below the rim of the car, knocking out a tooth on the edge of his seat-**

"**I'm comin', Harry, I'm comin'!"**

**A huge hand seized the back of Harry's robes and hoisted him out of the plummeting sidecar; Harry pulled his rucksack with him as he dragged himself on to the motorbike's seat and found himself back to back with Hagrid. As they soared upwards, away from the two remaining Death Eaters, Harry spat blood out of his mouth, pointing his wand at the falling sidecar, and yelled, "**_**Confringo**_**!"**

**He knew a dreadful, gut-wrenching pang for Hedwig as it exploded; the Death Eater nearest was blasted off his broom and fell from sight; his companion fell back and vanished.**

"**Harry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," moaned Hagrid, "I shouldn'ta tried ter repair it meself – yeh've got no room-"**

"**It's not a problem, just keep flying!" Harry shouted back, as two more Death Eaters emerged out of the darkness, drawing closer.**

**As the curses came shooting across the intervening space again, Hagrid swerved and zigzagged: Harry knew that Hagrid dare not use the dragon-fire button again, with Harry seated so insecurely. Harry sent Stunning Spell after Stunning Spell back at their pursuers, barely holding them off. He shot another blocking jinx at them: the closest Death Eater swerved to avoid it and his hood slipped, and by the red light of his next Stunning Spell, Harry saw the strangely blank face of Stanely Shunpike – Stan-**

"_**Expelliarmus**_**!" Harry yelled."**

"Bad move, Harry," warned Lupin.

"Why?"

"You used that spell against You-Know-Who last year, a highly unusual move. Using it again, in yet another life threatening situation, will only alert the Death Eaters to the likelihood that you are, well, you, and not anyone looking like you."

""**That's him, it's him, it's the real one!""**

"What did I say?"

"**The hooded Death Eater's shout reached Harry even above the thunder of the motorbike's engine: next moment, both pursuers had fallen back and disappeared from view.**

"**Harry, what's happened?" bellowed Hagrid. "Where've they gone?"**

"**I don't know!"**

**But Harry was afraid: the hooded Death Eater had shouted 'it's the real one'; how had he known? Ha gazed around at the apparently empty darkness and felt its menace. Where were they? **

**He clambered round on the seat to face forwards and seized hold of the back of Hagrid's jacket.**

"**Hagrid, do the dragon fire thing again, let's get out of here!"**

"**Hold on tight, then, Harry!"**

**There was a deafening, screeching roar again and the white-blue fire shot from the exhaust: Harry felt himself slipping backwards off what little of the seat he had, Hagrid flung backwards upon him, barely maintaining his grip on the handlebars-**

"**I think we've lost 'em Harry, I think we've done it!" yelled Hagrid.**

**But Harry was not convinced: fear lapped at him as he looked left and right for pursuers he was sure would come..why had they fallen back? One of them had still had a wand...**_**It's him, it's the real one**_**...they had said it right after he had tried to Disarm Stan...**

"**We're nearly there, Harry, we've nearly made it!" shouted Hagrid.**

**Harry felt the bike drop a little, though the lights down on the ground still seemed remote as stars.**

**Then the scar on his forehead burned like fire: as a Death Eater appeared on either side of the bike, two Killing Curses missed Harry by millimetres, cast from behind –**

**And then Harry saw him. Voldemort was flying like smoke on the wind, without broomstick or Thestral to hold him,"**

Everyone gasped at this development, and stared at each other. Voldemort could fly? How?

"**his snakelike face gleaming out of the blackness, his white fingers raising his wand again-**

**Hagrid let out a bellow of fear and steered the motorbike into a vertical dive. Clinging on for dear life, Harry sent Stunning Spells flying at random into the whirling night. He saw a body fly past him and knew he had hit one of them, but then he heard a bang and saw sparks from the engine; the motorbike spiralled through the air, completely out of control-**

**Green jets of light shot past them again. Harry had not idea which way was up, which down: his scar was still burning; he expected to die at any second. A hooded figure on a broomstick was feet from him, he saw it raise its arm-**

"**NO!"**

**With a shout of fury, Hagrid launched himself off the bike at the Death Eater; to his horror, Harry saw both Hagrid and the Death Eater falling out of sight, their combined weight too much for the broomstick-"**

"Hagrid!" gasped McGonagall, shocked. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't know, Professor. Probably I jus' wanted to help Harry."

"**Barely gripping the plummeting bike with his knees, Harry heard Voldemort scram, "**_**Mine**_**!"**

**It was over: he could not see or head where Voldemort was; he glimpsed another Death Eater swooping out of the way and heard "**_**Avada**_**-"**

**As the pain from Harry's scar forced his eyes shut, his wand acted of its own accord. He felt it drag his hand round like some great magnet, saw a spurt of golden fire through his half-closed eyelids, heard a **_**crack**_** and a scream of fury."**

"But, that's impossible. Wand's don't just act of their own accord," said Hermione.

Harry shrugged. "Evidently that's what's happening."

" **The remaining Death Eater yelled; Voldemort screamed, "**_**No**_**!": somehow, Harry found his nose an inch from the dragon-fire button: he punched it with his wand-free hand and the bike shot more flames into the air, hurtling straight down towards the ground.**

"**Hagrid!" Harry called, holding onto the bike for dear life, "Hagrid- **_**accio Hagrid**_**!""**

"Harry," interrupted Draco, looking vaguely odd about holding Ron and Hermione's hands, but to preoccupied with what was being read. "Harry," he repeated. "You do realise that when you _Accio_ a person to you, you are pulled to that person, not they are pulled to you."

"Well, I know that now."

"**The motorbike sped up, sucked towards the earth. Face level with the handlebars, Harry could see nothing but distant lights growing nearer and nearer: he was going to crash and there was nothing he could do about it. Behind him came another scream-**

"_**Your wand, Selwyn, give me your wand**_**!"**

**He felt Voldemort before he saw him. Looking sideways, he stared into the red eyes and was sure they would be the last thing he ever saw: Voldemort prepared to curse him once more-**

**And then Voldemort vanished. Harry looked down and saw Hagrid spread-eagled on the ground below him: he pulled hard at the handlebars to avoid hitting him, groped for the brake, but with an ear-splitting, ground-trembling crash, he smashed into a muddy pond."**

"Oh God, oh God Harry." Hermione bit her lip as the chapter ended.

"At least I survived. Now we just have to hope everyone else did, as well." Harry said.

"Way to cheer us all up, mate." Ron said.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," Hermione said, trying to reassure everyone.

"Well," interrupted Moody. "That's the end of the chapter. Who's going to read next?"

George stood up. "I'll read next, I think, if that's OK with everyone."

No one argued, so he headed to the front and replaced Moody in the seat that had been designated to whoever was reading the current chapter.

**Please review**


	7. Fallen Warrior

**Sorry for the delay in updating - it's taking forever to write this fic.**  


**Again, I do not Harry Potter. **

George flipped over the page to the next chapter and swallowed nervously.

"**Chapter 5 – Fallen Warrior."**

Everyone at the Gryffindor table looked wide-eyed at each other. Who'd been killed?

""**Hagrid?"**

**Harry struggled to raise himself out of the debris of metal and leather that surrounded him; his hands sank into inches of muddy water as he tried to stand. He could not understand where Voldemort had gone and expected him to swoop out of the darkness at any moment. Something hot and wet was trickling down his chin and from his forehead. He crawled out of the pond and stumbled towards the great, dark mass on the ground that was Hagrid. **

"**Hagrid? Hagrid, talk to me-"**

**But the dark mass did not stir. **

"**Who's there? Is it Potter? Are you Harry Potter?"**

**Harry did not recognise the man's voice. Then a woman shouted, "They've crashed, Ted!"**

"Mom, Dad!" cried out Tonks.

"**Crashed in the garden!"**

**Harry's head was swimming. **

"**Hagrid", he repeated stupidly, and his knees buckled. **

**The next thing he knew, he was lying on his back on what felt like cushions, with a burning sensation in his ribs and right arm. His missing tooth had been regrown. The scar on his forehead was still throbbing. **

"**Hagrid?"**

**He opened his eyes and saw that he was lying on a sofa in an unfamiliar, lamp lit sitting room. His rucksack lay on the floor a short distance away, wet and muddy. A fair-haired, big-bellied man was watching Harry anxiously. **

"**Hagrid's fine, son,""**

Harry visibly relaxed at that news.

"**said the man, "the wife's seeing to him now. How are you feeling? Anything else broken? I've fixed your ribs, your tooth, and your arm. I'm Ted, by the way, Ted Tonks – Dora's father."**

**Harry sat up too quickly: lights popped in front of his eyes and he felt sick and giddy. **

"**Voldemort-"**

"**Easy, now," said Ted Tonks, pacing a hand on Harry's shoulder and pushing him back against the cushions. "That was a nasty crash you just had. What happened, anyway? Something go wrong with the bike? Arthur Weasley overstretched himself again"**

George allowed himself a small smile at this comment.

"**him and his Muggle contraptions?"**

"**No," said Harry, as his scar pulsed like an open wound. "Death Eaters, loads of them – we were chased-"**

"**Death Eaters?" said Ted sharply. "What d'you mean, Death Eaters? I thought they didn't know you were being moved tonight, I thought-"**

"**They knew," said Harry.**

**Ted Tonks looked up at the ceiling as though he could see through it to the sky above. **

"**Well, we know our protective charms hold, then, don't we? They shouldn't be able to get within a hundred yards of the place in any direction."**

**Now Harry understood why Voldemort had vanished; it had been at the point when the motorbike crossed the barrier of the Order's charms. He only hoped they would continue to work: he imagined Voldemort, a hundred yards above them as they spoke, looking for a way to penetrate what Harry visualised as a great, transparent bubble. **

**He swung his legs off the sofa; he needed to see Hagrid with his own eyes before he would believe that he was alive. He had barely stood up, however, when the door opened and Hagrid squeezed through it, his face covered in mud and blood, limping a little but miraculously alive. **

"**Harry!"**

**Knocking over two delicate tables and an aspidistra, he covered the floor between them in two strides and pulled Harry into a hug that nearly cracked his newly repaired ribs. "Blimey, Harry, how did yeh get out o" that? I thought we were both goners."**

"**Yeah, me too. I can't believe-"**

**Harry broke off: he had just noticed the woman who had entered the room behind Hagrid. **

"**You!" he shouted, and he thrust his hand into his pocket, but it was empty." **

"Why do you want to attack her?" asked Angelina.

"Tonks, your mum, she's Andromeda isn't she? She used to be a Black." Draco asked.

"Yeah, she is. She was disowned by her family when she married my dad."

Draco turned to Angelina. "She's Bellatrix LeStrange's sister. She's my mum's sister as well, but no one really mentions her, because she married a Mu- a Muggle-born."

""**Your wand's here, son," said Ted, tapping it on Harry's arm. "It fell right beside you, I picked it up. And that's my wife you're shouting at."**

"**Oh, I'm – I'm sorry."**

**As she moved forward into the room, Mrs Tonks's resemblance to her sister Bellatrix became much less pronounced: her hair was a light, soft brown and her eyes were wider and kinder. Nevertheless, she looked a little haughty after Harry's exclamation."**

Tonks nodded. "I've always been told that, although mum was nothing like the Blacks in most aspects, she certainly has the family pride."

"**What happened to our daughter?" she asked. "Hagrid said you were ambushed; where is Nymphadora?"**

Tonks winced slightly at the use of her full first name.

""**I don't know," said Harry. "We don't know what happened to anyone else." **

**She and Ted exchanged looks. A mixture of fear and guilt gripped Harry at the sight of their expressions; if any of the others had died, it was his fault, all his fault. He had consented to the plan, given them his hair …."**

"Harry, for the last time, we were all prepared to take the risk," Ron sighed.

"I'm sure all of us will be fine, but, if anything does happen, it won't be your fault," added Hermione, reassuring her friend.

""**The Portkey", he said remembering all of a sudden. "We've got to get back to The Burrow and find out – then we'll be able to send you a word, or – or Tonks will, once she's-"**

"**Dora'll be OK, Dromeda," said Ted. "She knows her stuff, she's been in plenty of tight spots with the Aurors. The Portkey's through here," he added to Harry. "It's supposed to leave in three minutes, if you want to take it."**

"**Yeah, we do," said Harry. He seized his rucksack, swung it on to his shoulders. "I-"**

**He looked at Mrs Tonks, wanting to apologise for the state of fear in which he left her and for which he felt so terribly responsible, but no words occurred to him that did not seem hollow and insincere. **

"**I'll tell Tonks – Dora – to send word when she … thanks for patching us up, thanks for everything. I-"**

**He was glad to leave the room and follow Ted Tonks along a short hallway and into a bedroom. Hagrid came after them, bending low to avoid hitting his head on the door lintel. **

"**There you go, son. That's the Portkey."**

**Mr Tonks was pointing to a small, silver-backed hairbrush lying on the dressing table. **

"**Thanks," said Harry, reaching out to place a finger on it, ready to leave. **

"**Wait a moment," said Hagrid, looking around. "Harry, where's Hedwig?"**

"**She … she got hit," said Harry. **

**The realisation crashed over him: he felt ashamed of himself as the tears stung his eyes. The owl had been his companion, his one great link with the magical world whenever he had been forced to return to the Dursleys."**

"Oh, Harry," sympathised Ginny, touching his arm gently.

**Hagrid reached out a great hand and patted him painfully on the shoulder. **

""**Never mind," he said gruffly. "Never mind. She had a great old life-"**

"**Hagrid!" said Ted Tonks warningly, as the hairbrush glowed bright blue, and Hagrid only just got his forefinger to it in time. **

**With a jerk behind the navel, as though an invisible hook and line had dragged him forwards, Harry was pulled into nothingness, spinning uncontrollably, his finger glued to the Portkey as he and Hagrid hurtled away from the Mr Tonks: seconds later Harry's feet slammed on to the hard ground and he fell on his hands and knees in the yard of The Burrow. He heard screams. Throwing aside the no longer glowing hairbrush, Harry stood up, swaying slightly, and saw Mrs Weasley and Ginny running down the steps by the back door as Hagrid, who had collapsed on landing, clambered laboriously to his feet. **

"**Harry? Are you the real Harry? What happened? Where are the others?" cried Mrs Weasley. "**

Those around Harry glanced at each other, all those who had been on the mission grabbed the hand of the person nearest them and hoped for everybody's safety. George's grip tightened on the book painfully as he continued to read.

""**What d'you mean? Isn't anyone else back?" Harry panted. **

**The answer was clearly etched in Mrs Weasley's pale face. **

"**The Death Eaters were waiting for us," Harry told her. "We were surrounded the moment we took off – they knew it was tonight – I don't know what happened to anyone else. Four of them chased us, it was all we could do to get away, and then Voldemort caught up with us-"**

**He could hear the self-justifying note in his voice, the plea for her to understand why he did not know what had happened to her sons, but – **

"**Thank goodness you're all right," she said, pulling him into a hug he did not feel he deserved. "**

"Oh, Harry," sighed Mrs Weasley, looking at him with tenderness in her eyes. "None of this is your fault."

"I can't help but feel that it is, though, Mrs Weasley. If it weren't for me, no one would have had to go on the rescue mission, and there wouldn't be a risk of anyone dying."

"That's not true, Harry. Even if we hadn't had to go on a rescue mission, we'd still be fighting You-Know-Who, and there still would be a risk of one of us dying." Ron argued.

"I suppose," Harry shrugged, but still didn't look convinced.

""**Haven't go' any brandy, have yeh, Molly?" asked Hagrid a little shakily. "Fer medicinal purposes?"**

**She could have summoned it by magic, but as she hurried back towards the crooked house Harry knew that she wanted to hide her face. He turned to Ginny and she answered his unspoken plea for information at once. **

"**Ron and Tonks should have been back first, but they missed their Portkey, it came back without them,""**

Hermione reached round Draco and grabbed Ron's hand as he bit his lip.

"**she said, pointing at a rusty oilcan lying on the ground nearby. "And that one," she pointed at an ancient plimsoll, "should have been Dad and Fred's,"**

George glanced at his twin, panicked. Fred smiled reassuringly at him, then turned the smile to Hermione as she held his hand tighter.

"**they were supposed to be second. You and Hagrid were third and," she checked her watch, "if they made it, George and Lupin ought to be back in about a minute."**

**Mrs Weasley reappeared carrying a bottle of brandy, which she handed to Hagrid. He uncorked it and drank it straight down in one. **

**A blue light had appeared in the darkness: it grew larger and brighter, and Lupin and George appeared, spinning and then falling. Harry knew immediately that there was something wrong: Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and whose face was covered in blood."**

George's voice faded as he read this sentence, but, as the hall was so deathly quiet that no one had any trouble hearing him. All the colour immediately flooded from Fred's face at the thought of George being hurt. He could cope with having the Cruciatus Curse put on him to protect someone, but he didn't know if he could deal with hearing about George being hurt.

"**Harry ran forwards and seized George's legs. Together, he and Lupin carried George into the house and through the kitchen to the sitting room, where they laid him on the sofa. As the lamplight fell across George's head, Ginny gasped and Harry's stomach lurched: one of George's ears was missing. The side of his head and neck was covered in blood."**

George's voice trembled as he read out this paragraph, and Fred covered his mouth with his free hand, turning slightly green. Hermione, seeing this, swapped the hand that was holding his, and wrapped her arms around his, pulling squeezing his bicep and offering comfort as he had to listen to an account of his twin, his other half, being hurt.

"**No sooner had Mrs Weasley bent over her son than Lupin grabbed Harry by the upper arm and dragged him, none too gently, back into the kitchen, where Hagrid was still attempting to ease his bulk through the back door. **

"**Oi!" said Hagrid indignantly. "Le" go of him! Le' go of Harry!"**

**Lupin ignored him. **

"**What creature sat in the corner, the first time that Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?" he said, giving Harry a small shake. "Answer me!""**

"A Grindylow, wasn't it?" asked Harry, frowning as he thought back to this third year.

""**A – a Grindylow in a tank, wasn't it?"**

**Lupin released Harry and fell back against the kitchen cupboard.**

"**Wha' was tha' about?" roared Hagrid. **

"**I'm sorry, Harry, but I had to check,"" said Lupin tersely. "We've been betrayed. Voldemort knew that we were being moved tonight and the only people who could have told him were directly involved in the plan. You might have been an imposter."**

"**So why aren' you checkin' me?" panted Hagrid, still struggling to fit through the door.**

"**You're half-giant," said Lupin, looking up at Hagrid. "The Polyjuice Potion is designed for human use only."**

Hermione nodded in agreement, glancing at Ron and Harry.

"**None of the Order would have told Voldemort we were moving tonight," said Harry: the idea was dreadful to him, he could not believe it of any of them. "Voldemort only caught up with me towards the end, he didn't know which one I was in the beginning. If he'd been in on the plan, he'd have known from the start I was the one with Hagrid."**

"**Voldemort caught up with you?" said Lupin sharply. "What happened? How did you escape?"**

**Harry explained, briefly, how the Death Eaters pursuing them had seemed to recognise him as the true Harry, how they had abandoned the chase, how they must have summoned Voldemort, who had appeared just before he and Hagrid had reached the sanctuary of Tonks's parents". **

"**They recognised you? But how? What had you done?"**

"**I …" Harry tried to remember; the whole journey seemed like a blur of panic and confusion. "I saw Stan Shunpike … you know, the bloke who was the conductor on the Knight Bus? And I tried to Disarm him instead of – well, he doesn't know what he's doing, does he? He must be Imperiused!"**

**Lupin looked aghast. **

"**Harry, the time for Disarming is past! These people are trying to capture and kill you! At least Stun if you aren't prepared to kill!" **

"**We were hundreds of feet up! Stan's not himself, and if I Stunned him and he'd fallen he'd have died the same as if I'd use Avada Kedavra!"**

"Harry, stop being so noble," Draco sighed. "While it's good that you care, sometimes you just need to realise that you need to put yourself first."

"But, as I said, if I'd Stunned him, then it would have been as good as killing him."

"Then cast something else. Something that would enable him to stay on his broom, but would stop him chasing you," Draco said exasperatedly.

"Well, I'm sorry," Harry said stubbornly.

"**Expelliarmus saved me from Voldemort two years ago," Harry added defiantly. Lupin was reminding him of the sneering Hufflepuff Zacharias Smith,"**

All Dumbledore's Army members laughed at the mention of the irritating Hufflepuff.

"**who had jeered at Harry for wanting to teach Dumbledore's Army how to Disarm. **

"**Yes, Harry," said Lupin with a painful restraint, "and a great number of Death Eaters witnessed that happening! Forgive me, but it was a very unusual move then, under imminent threat of death. Repeating it tonight in front of Death Eaters who either witnessed or heard about the first occasion was close to suicidal!" **

"**So you think I should have killed Stan Shunpike?" said Harry, angrily. **

"**Of course not," said Lupin, "but the Death Eaters – frankly, most people! – would have expected you to attack back! Expelliarmus is a useful spell Harry, but the Death Eaters seem to think it is your signature move, and I urge you not to let it become so!"**

**Lupin was making Harry feel idiotic, and yet there was still a grain of defiance inside him."**

"Isn't there always?" asked Hermione, a faint smile gracing her lips as she glanced at Harry, then looked back at Fred to see how he was coping. He shot a weak smile at her and placed a hand over hers, pressing hers lightly.

""**I won't blast people out of my way just because they're there," said Harry. "That's Voldemort's job."**

**Lupins retort was lost: finally succeeding in squeezing through the door, Hagrid staggered to a chair and sat down; it collapsed beneath him. Ignoring his mingled oaths and apologies, Harry addressed Lupin again.**

"**Will George be OK?"**

**All Lupin's frustration with Harry seemed to drain away at the question. **

"**I think so, although there's no chance of replacing his ear, not when it's been cursed off-""**

Fred glanced up at the reader's chair. "Oh, Georgie…"

"I'll be fine, Fred," George didn't sound convinced.

Hermione placed a hand on Fred's cheek and forced him to look at her. "Fred, we can change the future. If you can do it with a time turner, we can do it now. Sirius and Professor Dumbledore won't die, Draco won't become a Death Eater, Professor Burbage won't be killed, Voldemort won't find out about the date of when we rescue Harry, and George won't lose an ear."

Fred smiled at her, a faint smile with an air of insecurity. "Promise?"

"Promise. I'll do everything in my power, as will everyone."

She turned to the rest of the room. "We can, can't we? Change the future?"

Her words were greeted with a roar of approval, as many people so far hadn't liked what they heard – with the misery and death present in every chapter.

George grinned at the brunette in thanks, and continued reading.

"**There was a scuffling from outside. Lupin dived for the back door; Harry leapt over Hagrid's legs, and sprinted into the yard.**

**Two figures had appeared in the yard and as Harry ran towards them he realised they were Hermione, now returning to her normal appearance, and Kingsley, both clutching a bent coat hanger."**

Those around Hermione relaxed slightly in the knowledge that another couple from their group was safe.

"**Hermione flung herself into Harry's arms, but Kingsley showed no pleasure at the sight of any of them. Over Hermione's shoulder Harry saw him raise his wand and point it at Lupin's chest. **

"**The last words Albus Dumbledore spoke to the pair of us?"**

""**Harry is the best hope we have. Trust him,"" said Lupin calmly. **

**Kingsley turned his wand on Harry, but Lupin said, "It's him, I've checked!"**

"**All right, all right!" said Kingsley, stowing his wand back beneath his cloak. "But somebody betrayed us! They knew, they knew it was tonight!"**

"**So it seems," replied Lupin, "but apparently they did not realise that there would be seven Harrys."**

"**Small comfort!" snarled Kingsley. "Who else is back?"**

"**Only Harry, Hagrid, George and me."**

**Hermione stifled a little moan behind her hand." **

"Who are you worried about?

"Ron, presumably. He is one of my best friends."

""**What happened to you?" Lupin asked Kingsley. **

"**Followed by five, injured two, might've killed one," Kingsley reeled off, "and we saw You-Know-Who was well, he joined the chase halfway through, but vanished pretty quickly. Remus, he can-"**

"**Fly," supplied Harry. "I saw him too, he came after Hagrid and me."**

"**So that's why he left – to follow you!" said Kingsley. "I couldn't understand why he'd vanished. But what made him change targets?"**

"**Harry behaved a little too kindly to Stun Shunpike," said Lupin. **

"**Stan?" repeated Hermione. "But I thought he was in Azkaban?"**

**Kingsley let out a mirthless laugh. **

"**Hermione, there's obviously been a mass breakout which the Ministry has hushed up. Traver's hood feel when I cursed him, he's supposed to be inside too. But what happened to you, Remus? Where's George?"**

"**He lost an ear," said Lupin.**

"**Lost an -?" repeated Hermione in a high voice. **

"**Snape's work," said Lupin. "**

Everyone turned to look at the Professor.

Fudge, who had been silent up until now, unbelieving that he had been wrong and Harry Potter had been right, said, "Snape, I'm afraid I will have to arrest you on suspicion of being a Death Eater."

Draco stood up. "Minister, you have no power anymore. And let us read the rest of the book before you go start arresting people. I'm sure Professor Snape wants to find out the end, and who knows, we may uncover something more."

Dumbledore nodded. "He is quite right, Cornelius. I will not say anymore, but there is a lot more to this story than meets the eye, and we must reach the end of the book before making any decisions."

""**Snape?" shouted Harry. "You didn't say –"**

"**He lost his hood during the chase. Sectumsempra was always a speciality of Snape's. I wish I could say I'd paid him back in kind, but it was I could do to keep George on the broom after he was injured; he was losing so much blood."**

**Silence fell between the four of them as they looked up at the sky. There was no sign of movement; the stars stared back, unblinking, indifferent, unobscured by flying friends. Where was Ron? Where were Fred and Mr Weasley? Where were Bill, Fleur, Tonks, Mad-Eye and Mundungus?**

"**Harry, give us a hand!" called Hagrid hoarsely from the door, in which he was stuck again. Glad of something to do, Harry pulled him free, then headed through the empty kitchen and back into the sitting room, where Mrs Weasley and Ginny were still tending to George. Mrs Weasley had staunched his bleeding now, and by the lamplight Harry saw a clean, gaping hole where George's ear had been. **

"**How is he?"**

**Mrs Weasley looked round and said, "I can't make it grow back, now when it's been removed by Dark Magic."**

George's knuckles turned white as he gripped the book while reading that sentence out. Fred extracted himself from Hermione and went over to his twin, conjouring another chair beside the one already there. Hermione looked as if she were to follow him, but Harry reached over and grabbed her hand before she had a chance.

"**But it could have been so much worse … he's alive." **

"**Yeah," said Harry. "Thank God."**

"**Did I hear someone else in the yard?" Ginny asked.**

"**Hermione and Kingsley," said Harry. **

"**Thank goodness," Ginny whispered. They looked at each other; Harry wanted to hug her, hold on to her;"**

"Harry, Ginny? Something to tell us?" Hermione asked, an eyebrow raised.

Harry blushed but shrugged. Ginny grinned at her friend.

"I'm so happy for the future you, Gin. You finally get to date Harry!" Hermione enthused.

"I know right!" Ginny grinned.

Cho Chang, sitting at the Ravenclaw table stood up. "How dare you steal my boyfriend, Weasley! Harry's mine, and no one will take him."

Ginny stood up as well, facing the older girl. "Firstly, the current me hasn't 'stolen' him, so don't take it out on me. And secondly, Harry is not an object, he doesn't belong to anyone." Her fingers inched towards her wand.

"Harry…" Cho looked beseechingly at the bespectacled wizard. She pouted and tears flooded her eyes.

He just shook his head. "Gin's right, Cho. I think you should accept the fact that whatever there was between us, it's gone." He tugged Ginny to sit down before she could hex the other girl.

Fred and George grinned. "Harry…" they started.

He looked over at them.

"While we appreciate that it seems impossible to kill you," Fred started.

"If you hurt Ginny at all," continued George.

"We will succeed in killing you once she's finished with you!" they finished together.

"Oh, boys," Hermione sighed, rolling her eyes. "What are we going to do with you?"

"Love us forever?" joked Fred.

George nodded, and started to read again. **"he did not even much care that Mrs Weasley was there, but before he could act on the impulse there was a great crash from the kitchen. **

"**I'll prove who I am, Kingsley, after I've seen my son, now back off if you know what's good for you!"**

**Harry had never heard Mr Weasley shout like that before. He burst into the living room, his bald patch gleaming with sweat, his spectacles askew, Fred a few of seconds behind him, both pale but uninjured. Hermione followed them into the room as well.**

"**Arthur!" sobbed Mrs Weasley. "Oh thank goodness!"**

"**How is he?"**

**Mr Weasley dropped to his knees beside George. For the first time since Harry had known him, Fred seemed to be lost for words. He gaped over the back if the sofa at his twin's wound as if he could not believe what he was seeing. Hermione went behind him and squeezed his arm reassuringly."**

"Thanks, 'Mione," smiled Fred. "Good to know it seems that you will always be there for me, for us."

"It's fine, Fred, we're friends, right? But where did ''Mione' come from?"

Fred shrugged. "I don't know. It just sounded right. You suit it."

George rolled his eyes at his twin. **"He spared her a glance and a smile, but immediately turned back to his twin.**

**Perhaps roused by the sound of Fred and their father's arrival George stirred. **

"**How do you feel, Georgie?" whispered Mrs Weasley. **

**George's fingers groped for the side of his head. **

"**Saint-like," he murmured."**

George laughed as he read ahead to the end of the joke, but Fred looked worried, and peered over his twins shoulder, relaxing slightly before his brother pushed him away.

"I don't want you to find out what happens before everyone else, mate, as much as I love you."

"**What's wrong with him?" croaked Fred, looking terrified. "Is his mind affected?"**

"**Saint-like," repeated George opening his eyes and looking up at his brother. "You see … I'm holy. Holey, Fred, geddit?"**

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief – if George could joke he must be feeling OK.

"**Mrs Weasley sobbed harder than ever. Colour flooded Fred's pale face. **

"**Pathetic," he told George. "Pathetic! With the whole wide world of ear-related humour before you, you go for holey?"**

"**Ah well," said George, grinning at his tear-soaked mother. "You'll be able to tell us apart now, anyway, Mum.""**

"Oh, George, Fred. I'm so sorry for getting you two confused constantly." Mrs Weasley sniffed. They both leaped up from their seats and went to embrace their crying mother.

"Mum, we love you,"

"And we really don't help you tell us apart," they admitted. With one last hug, George headed back up to the chair while Fred took his original seat, and held onto his mum's hand, realising she needed reassurance that her sons were OK.

"**He looked around.**

"**Hi Harry – you are Harry, right?"**

"**Yeah I am," said Harry moving closer to the sofa. **

"**Well, at least we got you back OK," said George. "Why aren't Ron and Bill huddled round my sickbed?"**

"**They're not back yet, George," said Mrs Weasley. George's grin faded. Harry glanced at Ginny and motioned for her to accompany him back outside. As they walked through the kitchen, she said in a low voice, "Ron and Tonks should be back by now. They didn't have a long journey; Aunt Muriel's not that far from here." **

**Harry said nothing. He had been trying to keep the fear at bay ever since reaching The Burrow, but now it enveloped him, seeming to crawl over his skin, throbbing in his chest, clogging his throat. As they walked down the back steps into the dark yard, Ginny took his hand."**

Ginny and Harry turned red as the Weasley boys looked threateningly at the black-haired Gryffindor. They all loved their baby sister, and while they knew she could handle herself, they all enjoyed playing protective older brother.

"**Kingsley was striding backwards and forwards, glancing up at the sky every time he turned. Harry was reminded of Uncle Vernon pacing the living room a million years ago. Hagrid and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, gazing upwards in silence. None of them looked around when Hermione, Harry and Ginny joined their silent vigil. **

**The minutes stretched into what might as well have been years. The slightest breath of wind made them all jump and turn towards the whispering bush or tree in the hope that one of the missing Order members might leap unscathed from its leaves –**

**And then a broom materialised directly above them and streaked towards the ground – **

"**It's them!" screamed Hermione.**

**Tonks landed in a long skid that send earth and pebbles everywhere.**

"**Remus!"Tonks cried as she staggered off the broom into Lupin's arms. His face was set and white: he seemed unable to speak. Ron tripped dazedly towards Harry and Hermione. **

"**You're OK," he mumbled, before Hermione flew at him and hugged him tightly."**

"Hermione, I do like to be able to breathe occasionally," joked Ron, grinning at the girl.

""**I thought – I thought –"**

"'**M all right," said Ron, patting her on the back. "'M fine."**

"**Ron was great," said Tonks warmly, relinquishing her hold on Lupin. "Wonderful. Stunned one of the Death Eaters, straight to the head, and when you're aiming at a moving target from a flying broom –"**

"**You did?" said Hermione, gazing up at Ron with her arms still around his neck. **

"**Always the tone of surprise," he said a little grumpily, breaking free." **

"Sorry, Ron," Hermione blushed.

"It's fine," he grinned.

"**Are we the last back?"**

"**No," said Ginny, "we're still waiting for Bill and Fleur and Mad-Eye and Mundungus. I'm going to tell Mum and Dad you're OK, Ron –"**

**She ran back inside. **

"**So what kept you? What happened?" Lupin sounded almost angry at Tonks. **

"**Bellatrix," said Tonks. "She wants me quite as much as she wants Harry, Remus, she tried very hard to kill me. I just wish I'd got her, I owe Bellatrix. But we definitely injured Rodolphus … then we got to Ron's Auntie Muriel's and we'd missed our Portkey and she was fussing over us –"**

**A muscle was jumping in Lupin's jaw. He nodded, but seemed unable to say anything else. **

"**So what happened to you lot?" Tonks asked, turning to Harry, Hermione and Kingsley.**

**They recounted the stories of their own journeys, but all the time the continued absence of Bill, Fleur, Mad-Eye and Mundungus seemed to lie upon them like a frost, its icy bite harder and harder to ignore. **

"**I'm going to have to get back to Downing Street. I should have been there an hour ago," said Kingsley finally, after a last sweeping gaze at the sky. "Let me know when they're back." **

**Lupin nodded. With a wave to the others, Kingsley walked away into the darkness towards the gate. Harry thought he heard the faintest pop as Kingsley Disapperated just beyond The Burrow's boundaries. **

**Mr and Mrs Weasley came racing down the back steps, Ginny behind them. Both parents hugged Ron before turning to Lupin and Tonks. **

"**Thank you," said Mrs Weasley, "for our sons."**

"**Don't be silly, Molly," said Tonks at once. **

"**How's George?" asked Lupin. **

"**What's wrong with him?" piped up Ron. **

"**He's lost –"**

**But the end of Mrs Weasley's sentence was drowned in a general outcry: a Thestral had just soared into sight and landed a few feet from them. Bill and Fleur slid from its back, windswept but unhurt.**

"**Bill! Thank God, thank God –"**

**Mrs Weasley ran forward, but the hug Bill bestowed upon her was perfunctory. Looking directly at his father, he said, "Mad-Eye's dead.""**

Silence fell. Nobody could believe that Mad-Eye, one of the top Aurors, who was always vigilant, had died. "Get over it," Moody said gruffly. "Learn from my death, and, as Miss Granger said earlier, we can change this future."

The other Aurors all nodded, but Tonks couldn't hide her sadness – Moody had trained her and they got on very well.

"**Nobody spoke, nobody moved. Harry felt as though something inside him was falling, falling through the earth, leaving him forever. **

"**We saw it," said Bill; Fleur nodded, tear tracks glittering on her cheeks in the light from the kitchen window. "It happened just after we broke out of the circle: Mad-Eye and Dung were close by us, they were heading north too. Voldemort – he can fly – went straight for them. Dung panicked, I heard him cry out, Mad-Eye tried to stop him, but he Disapperated."**

Everyone turned and glared at Dung. "You coward, you absolute coward," growled Hermione. "How could you?"

Dung, who had been silent and unnoticed until this point, looked down at his feet.

George hurried on with the reading, wanting to get this section over with.

"**Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye full in the face, he feel backwards off his broom and – there was nothing we could do, nothing, we had half a dozen on them of them on our own tail –"**

**Bill's voice broke. **

"**Off course you couldn't have done anything," said Lupin. **

**They all stood looking at each other. Harry could not quite comprehend it. Mad-Eye dead; it could not be … Mad-Eye, so tough, so brave, the consummate survivor …**

**At last it seemed to dawn on everyone, though nobody said it, that there was no point waiting in the yard any more, and in silence they followed Mr and Mrs Weasley back into The Burrow, and into the living room, where Fred and George were laughing together. **

"**What's wrong?" said Fred, scanning their faces, as they entered. "What's happened? Who's-?" **

"**Mad-Eye," said Mr Weasley. "Dead."**

**The twins' grins turned to grimaces of shock. Nobody seemed to know what to do. Tonks was crying silently into a handkerchief: she had been close to Mad-Eye, Harry knew, his favourite and his protégé at the Ministry of Magic."**

Moody looked affectionately at the young woman. "You've always shown promise, and I know you will go on to become one of the top Aurors, Nymphadora."

Tonks frowned at him through her tears, but with no real malice in her expression. "Don't call me Nymphadora!"

"**Hagrid, who had sat down on the floor in the corner where he had most space, was dabbing at his eyes with his tablecloth-sized handkerchief. **

**Bill walked over the sideboard and pulled out a bottle of Firewhisky and some glasses. **

"**Here," he said, with a wave of his wand he sent twelve full glasses soaring through the room to each of them, holding the thirteenth aloft. "Mad-Eye."**

"**Mad-Eye," they all said, and drank. **

"**Mad-Eye," echoed Hagrid, a little late, with a hiccough. **

**The Firewhisky seared Harry's throat: it seemed to burn feeling back into him, dispelling the numbness and sense of unreality, firing him with something like courage. **

"**So Mundungus disappeared?" said Lupin, who had drained his own glass in one. **

**The atmosphere changed at once: everybody looked tense, watching Lupin, both wanting him to go on, it seemed to Harry, and slightly afraid of what he might hear. **

"**I know what you're thinking," said Bill, "and I wondered that too, on the way back here, because they seemed to be expecting us, didn't they? But Mundungus can't have betrayed us. They didn't know there would be seven Harrys, that confused them the moment we appeared, and in case you've forgotten, it was Mundungus who suggested that little bit of skulduggery."**

Mundungus looked slightly proud at that revelation, but no one congratulated him.

"**Why wouldn't he have told them the essential point? I think Dung panicked, it's as simple as that. He didn't want to come in the first place, but Mad-Eye made him, and You-Know-Who went straight for them: it was enough to make anyone panic."**

"**You-Know-Who acted exactly as Mad-Eye expected him to," sniffed Tonks. "Mad-Eye said he'd expect the real Harry to be with the toughest, most skilled Aurors. He chased Mad-Eye first, and when Mundungus gave them away, he switched to Kingsley …"**

"**Yes, and zat eez all very good," snapped Fleur, "but still eet does not explain 'ow zey knew we were moving 'Arry tonight, does eet? Somebody must 'ave been careless. Somebody let slip se date to an outsider. Eet eez ze only explanation for sem knowing se date but no se 'ole plan." **

**She glared around at them all, tear tracks still etched on her beautiful face, silently daring any of them to contradict her. Nobody did. The only sound to break the silence was that of Hagrid hiccoughing from behind his handkerchief. Harry glanced at Hagrid, who had just risked his own life to save Harry's – Hagrid, whom he loved, whom he trusted, who had once been tricked into giving Voldemort crucial information in exchange for a dragon's egg …"**

"What?" McGonagall exclaimed. "Hagrid!"

"It was first year, Professor," Harry explained. "Remember when you caught us at the Astronomy Tower?"

"Yes…"

"Well, we were giving the dragon to Charlie to take to the reserve in Romania," Hermione explained.

"It was the best thing for the dragon, Professor," interjected Charlie, walking into the Great Hall. "Sorry, I'm late, have I missed anything important?"

"Just a bit," Fred smiled weakly. "Come over here and we'll fill you in. You may have to conjure up a chair though. Charlie did as Fred suggested as George continued reading.

""**No," Harry said aloud, and they all looked at him, surprised; the Firewhisky seemed to have amplified his voice. "I mean … if somebody made a mistake," Harry went on, "and let something slip, I know they didn't mean to do it. It's not their fault," he repeated, again a little louder than he would usually have spoken. "We've got to trust each other. I trust all of you, I don't think anyone in this room would ever sell me to Voldemort." **

**More silence followed his words. They were all looking at him; Harry felt a little hot again, and drank some more Firewhisky for something to do. As he drank, he thought of Mad-Eye, Mad-Eye had always been scathing about Dumbledore's willingness to trust people. **

"**Well said, Harry," said Fred unexpectedly."**

"Is it really that unexpected that I support something Harry says?" asked Fred. "Sometimes he does come out with something sensible."

"Not very often though," Hermione teased Harry gently. "He's far too noble and self-sacrificing."

"Thanks, guys, thanks a lot." Harry sighed, rolling his eyes.

"You know we love you, Harry," Hermione assured him, shooting him a warm smile.

""**Yeah, 'ear, 'ear," said George, with half a glance at Fred, the corner of whose mouth twitched. "**

"Georgie, stop trying to cheer me up," reproached Fred.

"Sorry mate, but it seems like future you needs it," said George, turning back to the book.

"**Lupin was wearing an odd expression as he looked at Harry: it was close to pitying. **

"**You think I'm a fool?" demanded Harry. **

"**No, I think you're like James," said Lupin, "who would have regarded it as the height of dishonour to mistrust his friends."**

**Harry knew what Lupin was getting at: that his father had been betrayed by his friend, Peter Pettigrew."**

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Lupin all frowned and the dog growled at the mention of Pettigrew.

"**He felt irrationally angry. He wanted to argue, but Lupin had turned away, from him, set down his glass upon a side table and addressed Bill, "There's work to do. I can ask Kingsley whether"**

"**No" said Bill at once, "I'll do it, I'll come."**

"**Where are you going?" said Tonks and Fleur together. **

"**Mad-Eye's body," said Lupin. "We need to recover it."**

"**Can't it –"began Mrs Weasley, with an appealing look at Bill. **

"**Wait?" said Bill. "Nor unless you'd rather the Death Eaters took it?"**

**Nobody spoke. Lupin and Bill said goodbye and left. **

**The rest of them now dropped into chairs, all except Harry who remained standing. The suddenness and completeness of death was with them like a presence. **

"**I've got to go too," said Harry."**

"No, Harry." Hermione told him.

"But-"

"Harry…" Ginny said.

"Everyone seems to be doing things and they won't let me help," argued Harry.

"Because they don't want you to be killed," reasoned Ron.

"Just accept it, Harry, and stop arguing," Fred told him.

George started to read again before Harry could retort.

"**Ten pairs of started eyes looked at him. **

"**Don't be silly, Harry," said Mrs Weasley. "What are you talking about?"**

"**I can't stay here."**

**He rubbed his forehead: it was prickling again; it had not hurt like this for more than a year.**

"**You're all in danger while I'm here. I don't want –"**

"**But don't be so silly!" said Mrs Weasley. "The whole point of tonight was to get you here safely, and thank goodness it worked. And Fleur's agreed to get married here rather than in France, we've arranged everything so that we can stay together and look after you-"**

**She did not understand she was making him feel worse, not better."**

"I'm so sorry, Mrs Weasley, I've caused you so much trouble over the years."

"Nonsense, Harry, you're like a son to me," Molly smiled at him.

""**If Voldemort finds out I'm here –"**

"**But why should he?" asked Mrs Weasley.**

"**There are a dozen places you might be now, Harry," said Mr Weasley. "He's got no way of knowing which safe house you're in."**

"**It's not me I'm worried for!"**

"**We know that," said Mr Weasley quietly, "but it would make our efforts tonight seem rather pointless if you left."**

"**Yer not goin' anywhere," growled Hagrid. "Blimey, Harry after all we wen' through ter get you here?"**

"**Yeah, what about my bleeding ear?" said George, hoisting himself up on his cushions. **

"**I know that –"**

"**Mad-Eye wouldn't want –"**

"**I KNOW!" Harry bellowed. **

**He felt beleaguered and blackmailed: did they think he did not know what they had done for him, didn't they understand that it was precisely that reason that he wanted to go now, before they had to suffer any more on his behalf? There was a long and awkward silence in which his scar continued to prickle and throb, and which was broken at least by Mrs Weasley. **

"**Where's Hedwig, Harry?" she said coaxingly. "We can put her up with Pigwidgeon and give her something to eat."**

**His insides clenched like a fist. He could not tell her the truth. He drank the last of his Firewhisky to avoid answering. **

"**Wait 'til it gets out yeh did it again, Harry," said Hagrid. "Escaped him, fought him off when he was right on top of yeh!"**

"**It wasn't me," said Harry flatly. "It was my wand. My wand acted of its own accord."**

**After a few moments, Hermione said gently, "But that's impossible, Harry. You mean that you did magic without meaning to; you reacted instinctively.""**

"I meant what I said, Hermione," said Harry.

"But, Harry, it's not possible. Wands can't do that, you must have reacted instinctively, there's no other explanation," Hermione said patiently.

"But it seems like that's what happened," Harry retorted sharply.

"But it couldn't have!" cried Hermione.

"Well, it did!" shouted Harry. "Stop going on, Hermione!"

"I'm just trying to make sense of what happened, don't have a go at me, Harry James Potter."

"Guys, guys, calm down!" Fred intervened. "Harry, Hermione's right. I've never heard of anything like that happening before, as far as I'm aware, it is impossible. But we never know. Harry basically is the definition of 'impossible'," he added to Hermione, eliciting a small smile from her.

"There we go, 'Mione, there's that smile," he grinned. "Now, please, can we get on with reading without any more arguments – there are bound to be plenty of them in the book."

Hermione and Harry nodded their agreement and smiled slightly at each other.

""**No," said Harry. "The bike was falling. I couldn't have told you where Voldemort was but my wand spun in my hand and found him and shot a spell at him, and it wasn't even a spell I recognised. I've never made gold flames appear before." **

"**Often," said Mr Weasley, "when you're in a pressured situation you can produce magic you never dreamed of. Small children often find, before they're trained –" **

"**It wasn't like that," said Harry through gritted teeth. His scar was burning: he felt angry and frustrated; he hated the idea that they were all imagining him to have power to match Voldemort's. **

**No one said anything. He knew that they did not believe him. Now that he came to think of it, he had never heard of a wand performing magic on its own before. **

**His scar seared with pain; it was all he could do not to moan aloud. Muttering about fresh air, he set down his glass and left the room. **

**As he crossed the dark yard, the great skeletal Thestral looked up, rustled its enormous bat-like wings, then resumed its grazing. Harry stopped at the gate into the garden, starring out at its overgrown plants, rubbing his pounding forehead and thinking of Dumbledore. **

**Dumbledore would have believed him, he knew it. Dumbledore would have known how and why Harry's wand had acted independently, because Dumbledore always had the answers; he had known about wands, had explained to Harry the strange connection that existed between his wand and Voldemort's … but Dumbledore like Mad-Eye, like Sirius, like his parents, like his poor owl, were gone where Harry could never talk to them again, He felt a burning in his throat that had nothing to do with Firewhisky …**

**And then, out of nowhere, the pain in his scar peaked. As he clutched his forehead and closed his eyes, a voice screamed inside his head. **

"_**You told me the problem would be solved by using another's wand!"**_

**And into his mind burst the vision of an emaciated old man lying in rags upon a stone floor, screaming, a horrible, drawn-out scream, a scream of unendurable agony …**

"**No! No! I beg you, I beg you … "**

"**You lied to Lord Voldemort, Ollivander!""**

"Ollivander…"the whisper went round the hall. Ollivander had played a part in all their lives, and it now seemed that he was at the mercy of Voldemort, or would be.

"**I did not … I swear I did not …"**

"**You sought to help Potter, to help him escape me!"**

"**I swear I did not … I believed a different wand would work …"**

"**Explain, then, what happened. Lucius's wand is destroyed!"**

"**I cannot understand … the connection … exits only … between your two wands …"**

"_**Lies!" **_

"**Please … I beg you …"**

**And Harry saw the white hand raise its wand and felt Voldemort's surge of vicious anger, saw the frail old man on the floor writhe in agony –"**

People all around the room shook their heads. No one should have to go through that.

""**Harry?"**

**It was over as quickly as it had come: Harry stood shaking in the darkness, clutching the gate into the garden, his heart racing, his scar still tingling. It was several moments before he realised that Ron and Hermione were at his side. **

"**Harry, come back into the house," Hermione whispered. "You aren't still thinking of leaving?"**

"**Yeah, you've got to stay, mate," said Ron, thumping Harry on the back.**

"**Are you all right?" Hermione asked, close enough now to look into Harry's face. "You look awful!""**

"You always know how to make me feel better, don't you, Hermione?" Harry tried to joke, but the subject they were reading about was much too serious to allow for much humour.

""**Well," said Harry shakily, "I probably look better than Ollivander …"**

**When he had finished telling them what he had seen, Ron looked appalled, but Hermione downright terrified. **

"**But it was supposed to have stopped! Your scar – it wasn't supposed to do this anymore! You mustn't let that connection open up again – Dumbledore wanted you to close your mind!"**

**When he did not reply, she gripped his arm.**

"**Harry, he's taking over the Ministry and the newspaper and half the wizarding world! Don't let him inside your head too!" **

"**Don't you think I know that?" Harry pushed his way past them back into The Burrow, Ron and Hermione following him. His attention was immediately grabbed by Fred kneeling by the sofa, tears falling from his eyes as he watched George's sleeping form."**

George looked up from the book as he made eye contact with his twin. "Freddie," he murmured. "I'll be fine. You shouldn't worry."

Fred just shook his head. "You're my twin, George, and you lost an ear. That's pretty major."

"But it could have been a lot worse for me," George told him.

"Thanks George, very helpful. I was doing quite well blocking all thoughts of that alternative from my mind." Fred bit his lip. "Just get on with reading, please, mate."

George nodded and looked back at the book.

"**It was all too clear that he'd been putting on an act in front of George, pretending he was fine. Ron and Hermione ran right into Harry, who'd stopped to look at the twins.**

"**What's the matter, Harry?" Hermione started, and then stopped as she caught sight of Fred herself. Gently easing herself past Harry, she went over to the kneeling red-head, placing a small hand on his back as she knelt down beside him."**

"Thanks, Hermione, for being there for me," Fred whispered to Hermione.

"It's fine, Fred. I'll always be here," she murmured in response, putting a hand on his arm comfortingly. "We're friends, right?"

"Right," Fred smiled slightly at the brunette.

"**He glanced at her, pulling her body close to his, and leaning his forehead against hers. Ron and Harry shared a glance before moving closer.**

"**He'll be fine Fred, I promise."**

"**He's lost an ear!" Fred interjected."**

George stopped reading and glanced up at Fred and Hermione. "Woah, guys."

"What?" they asked in unison.

"This," he gestured to the book.

Hermione frowned. "What about it? Fred's a friend. You both are. Last time I checked, friends looked out for each other."

"Yeah, _friends _do." George grinned at the two, who looked nonplussed.

"**I know, love, I know." **

"You don't address friends as _love_, now, do you?" George teased Hermione.

"Just carry on reading, George," frowned Fred.

"Fine, fine! I will. **But this is George. He'll be fine, you can see that. You really won't help him when you collapse from exhaustion. Why don't you go to bed?"**

"**I can't, 'Mione. I just can't, not while he's lying here, like this."**

"**You can, Fred. Look, just try to get some sleep. If you can't, then you can't. But at least try, for me please. I do not want my boyfriend"**

Fred and Hermione glanced at each other in shock as all around them people burst into whispers. Fred recovered from his shock first.

"So, 'Mione, what do you think of that?" he asked the girl.

She shook her head, seemingly clearing it from whatever thoughts were in there. "Well, it was certainly unexpected. You and I – I mean – um…"

"Hermione Granger, at a loss for words, now, that is something " Fred said, giving her a soft smile to let her know that he was only joking.

Ginny reached across the table to grip Hermione's hand. "I'm so happy for future you, Hermione. I'm so excited, you could be my sister one day!"

Hermione managed to smile slightly. "Gin, I think you're getting ahead of yourself, Fred and I aren't actually dating yet."

"But you will soon!"

Hermione half closed her eyes and sneaked a look at Fred under her lashes. "So it seems, Ginny," putting on a world-weary tone.

"**keeling over due to him not sleeping."**

**Fred nodded slightly and got to his feet, helping Hermione up as well. They both headed upstairs, not glancing behind them as they left Ron and Harry staring after them, along with everyone else in the room, including Molly Weasley, who seemed gobsmacked that Hermione Granger was dating one of the twins."**

"And on that bombshell, ladies and gentlemen," grinned George, his eyes twinkling, "the chapter ends. Who wants to read next? I want to go chat to my twin."

"Interrogate, more like," Fred sighed, causing Hermione to laugh slightly before she caught herself and glanced at Fred, blushing. He winked back as George headed towards them, passing the book over to Angelina who had made her way over to start reading.

**What do you think? I would love to know.**

**So, please review, just type in that box and click that button!**


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